Cracks in the Looking Glass
by Living in a Casket
Summary: A mistake can change the future, because the future isn't set in stone. A memory can change the past, because rose-tinted glasses cover your concious mind. Starfire knows this all too well, and she's driven to near breaking point on the wrong side. OOC/AU
1. Chapter 1

**Cracks in the Looking Glass**

**Bonjour! **

**It is me. Back from the dead, I know. Sorry I haven't been posting a lot, but I promise that all this time was spent writing and I have whole stories to upload, just hours between them! Silver lining...think about it...**

**Alright, so, on with the show; I introduce to you...BA-DA-DA-DA-DA-DA-DAAA! ****CRACKS IN THE LOOKING GLASS! ****I'm not sure about the name, but as this is a story with several sequels...well...I needed something flexible.**

**This has almost everything, sass, crude humour, dark humour, gore, sex (but it's ****TASTEFUL)****, light humour, love, no romance atm but I'm working on it! And everyone's favourite...BITCH!**

**You know what I write, there's always a cliffy, there's hardly ever a clean sentence, there's NEVER any lovey-dovey 'I sold my soul for you' shit, you know the drill, and you luurrrrvvveee it!**

**Very OOC (though still lovable), Rated T for adult themes, suggested rape, abuse, neglect and prostitution. Okay...the last one's a lie...but it made you giggle, admit it!**

**Please read this, you won't regret it, although, if you're not up to it – I suggest not reading it.**

**Jade.**

Introduction

"TITANS, GO!" Robin yelled, unleashing an array of attacks from his utility belt.

Starfire grabbed him by the arms and flew him up, enabling him to gain enough height to slam his Bo staff into the security window. It crashed open, glass falling like glitter all over the bank floor.

"Your reign of terror is over, Red X!" Robin yelled.

Facing the villain were just two members of the Teen Titans. Red X wasn't fazed by them, Robin had equipped him with everything he'd ever need to defeat Starfire and Robin's determination would get the better of him and he'd manage to slip away.

Red X grinned, the two Titans facing him couldn't see it – of course – but it gave him satisfaction nonetheless. It seemed that his attack on the bank hadn't gone unnoticed, yet just two Titans were spared to stop him – were they being over ambitious, or just stupid?

"Two fifths of the Teen Titans..." He said, straightening out of his crouch and facing them, his eyes narrowed, "What a surprise."

"You're going down, so just surrender – now." Robin said through gritted teeth.

"Reign of _terror_?" Red X asked, confused. "I'm in a _bank_, stealing money for _myself_...the guards are unconscious – not _dead_ – so who am I _terrorizing_?" He asked, logically.

Starfire thought over what he'd said, he was telling the truth – he wasn't actually harming anyone. He was stealing their money...but more money can always be made.

"Erm, Robin...he has the point by the tail."

"Enough of the wise-cracks." Robin snapped, leaping for the villain.

Starfire was slow to react – her brain still thinking over what had been said by the supposedly harmless villain. He had nothing on Slade's plans; who was actually planning to kill people.

But before she could even light her starbolts, she was grabbed around the throat by Red X and electrocuted until she convulsed. Her eyes rolled about to see Robin pinned to the wall by a metal 'x', covered in an ultra-fast setting adhesive.

"You're coming with me, Cutie." He chuckled, teleporting out of the bank.

"NO!" Robin growled, struggling against the 'x' and grunting.

Several minutes passed of struggling before Robin was cut loose by the rest of the Titans, having just arrived from a different situation.

"Where's Star?" Cyborg asked, looking around to see that the bank was in tatters but there was no sign of the little Tamaranean girl.

"Red X has her." Robin said, pulling off the remnants of his confines as they regrouped.

"How did he manage that?" Beast Boy asked, worried.

"She didn't fight; she just stood there and let him take her..." Robin said angrily.

Raven studied the way that Robin was speaking, the way his faced moved – he seemed to be telling the truth. But why would Starfire let him take her? Why would she put herself into danger like that?

"Why?" She asked into the silence.

"I don't know, maybe if the psychic was here..." Robin trailed off, his eyebrow pulsing angrily at Raven.

"Don't blame this on Raven, you told us to take Doctor Light – you _said_ that you and Star could 'handle it'." Cyborg snapped, "Looks like you handled it just fine." He muttered.

"If she'd have fought back, we would have!" Robin yelled, the vein on his head pulsating harder.

"You're blaming Star now!" Beast Boy cut in, "Dude, so wrong."

"Why didn't you come with us? Rather than just following Cyborg like a little puppy-dog?" Robin hissed, "What's your excuse?" He snapped.

"Calm down." Raven yelled, stopping their bickering completely and placing them all into their own orb of black magic. "Arguing like children _isn't_ going to get Starfire back, _or_ get our answers." She sighed.

"He _is_ a child!" Cyborg snapped at Robin, "What is he? Thirteen?"

"Quiet!" Raven snapped, shrinking the orb Cyborg was in so that he was curled up uncomfortably. "We all know what Red X is like; we all know what he can do – so let's find Starfire before any of those things happen."

She lowered her magic slowly, her eyes reverting to their naturally, unnatural purple. She watched the tension between Robin and Cyborg bubble before they turned away from each other angrily.

Cyborg opened up the computer in his arm and clicked a few buttons, searching the immediate area for any sign of Red X or Starfire.

"I can't get a lock on either of their suits; he must have found the one planted in his own suit a while ago, but...I don't know about Star's." He sighed.

"Can't you track her DNA?" Beast Boy asked, remembering how he'd tracked Bumblebee that way when she was taken.

"There's nothing to track, no blood, no clothing, not even a single skin cell from the last three hours here, we're just going to have to do it the old-fashioned way."

"What is it you are planning to do with me?" Starfire asked, panting.

Red X had teleported them to some far-off abandoned warehouse. When they arrived, he'd placed her on the floor – somewhat gently – with her limp body still twitching from the stunning.

The lights were then switched on, rows lighting up to show the size of the building. She squinted, seeing the outline of Red X a few feet from her.

"What do you think?" He asked, stroking her hair out of her face and out of her eyes before smashing his fist into the tracking device on her chest.

"It is some horrible way to get to Robin, is it not?" She asked, her eyes twinkling slightly with fear. "He will not come for me, this is a pointless exercise."

"That, I don't believe." He said, caressing her cheek. "You're just too cute to leave in the hands of a...super villain." He chuckled.

"You're just a simple villain; don't be flattering to yourself..." She said angrily at him.

"And your way of speaking is rather..._endearing_." He chuckled, shooting an X-shaped constricting restraint at her.

It wrapped around her body, pinning her arms at her sides and stopping her from being able to get up.

"That's for when you can move again, and it's no use struggling." He told her.

"Tamaranean strength far out-shines that of any Earth material." Starfire warned him.

He chuckled and got close to her face, she glared at him intensely – she was defiant, and brave, he'd give her that. He then moved closer to her, his mask touching her ear.

"Alas, you're forgetting...your friend Robin created this suit, and armed it with all I'll ever need to defeat you and your friends." He whispered before moving away from her suddenly violently struggling form.

"I WILL ESCAPE FROM HERE! I WILL NOT LET YOU HARM MY FRIENDS!" She yelled at him, writhing harder. "AH!" She screamed loudly, her eyes glowing bright jade.

Her screaming continued for several minutes, Red X only just managing to stand up long enough to shoot a smaller adhesive 'x' at her mouth – silencing her completely.

She tried to scream through the 'x' but it was proving impossible – she was panting through her nose hard when Red X pulled her up, and threw her roughly across the floor.

"If you can't get enough air into your system, you'll pass out." He told her, throwing her about a bit more, "Careful, you'll make yourself sick." He warned her as she pulled in as much as she could through her nose – it was blocked with the 'x' slightly and it was proving difficult to get any air.

Red X throwing her about wasn't helping her to keep calm, to control her breathing. Her eyes began to get heavy but she persisted with pulling in as much air as she could – willing the adhesive to let her breathe. Her panic was bubbling in her throat, and before she could control herself to do otherwise, the contents of her stomach spilled into her mouth and caught in her throat.

Breathing was nearly impossible now, and she coughed and spluttered until all the colours in the room had gone and she was staring at black – completely unable to breathe.

"My equipment's picking up residue from the teleportation device." Cyborg said into his communicator.

"Track it, we'll follow you." Robin said, his voice echoing out of the speaker's on everyone's communicators.

"Check." Raven said.

"Dude, you're miles away." Beast Boy moaned, shifting into a hawk.

"You're so troublesome." Red X muttered, picking up the Tamaranean girl and putting her onto the shabby old table at the back of the warehouse, "All you had to do was listen to what I was telling you, and maybe you'd still be alive." He sighed.

Starfire had indeed been sick, the panic she was in to breathe was proving too much for her nerves and because she wouldn't stop moving – he couldn't get the adhesive off her. She'd choked to death on her own vomit shortly after.

"Guess I'd better leave you here...it would be unfair to rob them of your body." He said, picking up his bags of money and teleporting out of the warehouse.

The Tamaranean girl was indeed dead; there was no false assessment from Red X. Her heart was no longer beating and – quite obviously – she wasn't breathing. It was an hour before the Titans found her body, colourless and still.

"STAR!" Cyborg screamed, running over to the table and grabbing her.

He lifted her head but before he checked her pulse, he could already tell she was dead; her skin was deathly cold and as hard steel though she would still flop about sickeningly. But he willed her to be alive, regardless.

"No, no, no." He sobbed, willing her to breathe or open her eyes and say 'greetings, friend Cyborg'. But alas, she did not.

He let go of her head and watched it fall backwards as he pulled her restraints off, angry bruises could be seen where she'd struggled.

"C'mon, Star." He cried, wiping the hair out of her eyes and gathering her up bridal-style. "No one has to see you like this." He told her, covering her bruised body up as best he could and wiping her face free of vomit.

A stroke of depression fell over him when he watched Raven arrive in the doorway; she took in the sight of Starfire and ran forwards.

"Get her into the T-Car, the infirmary will be ready in minutes." She commanded, opening a portal.

"I don't think it will do much good..." He said, shuffling uncomfortably.

"Then I'll heal her myself," She said, coming close enough to see the usually bright-skinned girl's pale face and unmoving chest. "C-Cy..." She stuttered.

He just looked at her, the one that should have been able to handle Star's death better than any of them – about ready to break down.

"Keep Robin out of here." She told Cyborg, lifting the surprisingly light alien girl into her own arms.

The loss of Starfire's weight seemed to affect him positively; only Raven could feel the sadness about crushing him...and he was hiding it well.

Raven crouched down, placing Starfire ever so gently onto the floor and holding her hand over her body. She was attempting to see how her friend had died, and if she was fully gone – she _was_ alien, after all.

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos, Azarath Metrion Zinthos..." She said soothingly, almost singing to her friend. But her words didn't have enough depth to them, not like they normally did.

Outside, Cyborg was trying to keep Beast Boy from going inside.

"Raven's in there, just seeing to Star." Cyborg said, rubbing his temple to fight the tears – his eye rimmed with red.

"Dude, two people can fit in that huge warehouse." He said, pushing through – or attempting to.

"BB, stay here." Cyborg said, grabbing his shoulder and pulling him back from the door. "Raven needs to be alone." He snapped.

"Cyborg!" Beast Boy growled, trying to wriggle out of his grasp.

"You're not allowed in."

"Why the hell not? She could be hurt and need help!"

"Raven can tell you."

"What's going on? Why are you out here?" They heard from behind them.

Cyborg groaned and saw Robin throwing his helmet back onto his R-Cycle over his shoulder. The two of them turned to be confronted by Robin arming himself.

"Raven's in there with Starfire and we're not allowed inside for some reason." Beast Boy snarled, getting out of Cyborg's shocked and distraught grip.

"Let us through, Cyborg." Robin said, trying to side-step him.

"I can't do that, Robin." He said, picking him up and moving him away. "Raven is...with Starfire, and she said to leave her alone." He said.

"What are they doing?" Robin asked, still trying to get in.

"Dude, he won't say." Beast Boy huffed, crossing his arms angrily.

"Anything they're doing, they can do with us there; Starfire needs us." Robin said angrily, "She's our friend too – I don't care how bad she looks." He snarled.

"Respect her privacy, _Boy Wonder_." Cyborg said, trying to use Robin's honour and respect for his friends against him.

"What's happened, Cyborg?" Robin asked, his natural suspicions poking through – he couldn't trust anything that anyone said, thanks to Batman.

"I–" Cyborg was cut off by Raven.

"Starfire's dead." She said, looking Robin in the eyes. "I've made her as presentable as possible but...there's only so much I can do." She told him, she seemed to not care much for his weak emotional state as she told him.

Robin hadn't moved, he just stared at the glistening tear on Cyborg's cheek and watched Beast Boy panic.

"No, she's not dead..." He said, shoving Raven's shoulder, "This is a sick joke, I overstepped the line a few weeks ago but...you can't..." He yelled, trying to get someone to groan and say that they'd been ratted out...but they didn't.

"Let me see her." Robin said quietly, making a step towards the door that Raven was blocking. She didn't move, she knew he'd react badly when he saw the state she was in. "Raven...please." He whispered in a broken voice, "I-I need..." His throat swelled up too much for him to finish.

She sighed and put her arm around his heaving shoulders, leading him into the warehouse. Raven had turned all the lights but one off, Starfire's body was in the centre of the room, in the light.

Raven had removed her cape and placed it around Starfire's body, the hood covering her face and the rest wrapped around her body.

"H-How did s-she...d-d..." Robin asked, trying to speak but he was unable.

Raven understood what he was asking and kept him away from the body – not wanting him to lose too much control around her remains.

"She chocked on her own vomit, Red X restrained her and must have covered her mouth – she was panicked, just...too angry; a natural emotion for her people." She told him.

Though Raven was distraught, she had to keep as much control over her emotions as she possibly could – considering all the bad things that he powers could do if they uncontrolled like her emotions. Or at least, that's what Robin thought.

"Did she suffer?" He asked, taking his first steps towards her – though he was being supported by Raven's black magic.

"Not that I'm aware of, it would have been quick...and nicer than the torture they probably had planned for her." She told him.

"Dying isn't better than _anything_, Raven." He snapped, walking over to Starfire's body with more haste, and collapsing at her side. "You didn't have to die." He told her, rummaging around the air above her – but an emotional field was around her. "Let it go, Raven! I want to see her!" He yelled at her.

"No, you don't." She told him. "You have to say goodbye."

"I don't have to do anything of the sort." He snarled at her, "Let me see her!" He ordered.

She didn't lower the magic and Robin was forced to turn around and glare – as nastily as he could with a mask on – right at her.

"Say goodbye, Robin." She told him, lowering the shield slightly. "I'll be outside."

Robin didn't turn around until she'd shut the door, of course she'd be listening to him – but it was nice to act as if he was alone with her.

"You're not dead, Star." He whispered, not touching her as Raven had suggested – no matter how much he wanted to, he wanted to remember her warm and smiling. "Everyone's going to remember you." He told her, a tear slipping from the corner of his mask. He

Not wanting a soggy mask, he took it off and rubbed the tears from both eyes as he sat down, crossing his legs and looking at her feet.

"I'm sorry that I s-said all that stuff about you..." He sobbed, running his hand through his hair, "If I hadn't been so confident...you'd-you...would..." He sobbed again, his voice turning to a whisper as his throat clogged up.

"No one will forget you, I promise." He said, forgetting himself and touching her shoulder.

He yanked his hand back when he felt how cold she truly was, he froze as more tears fell out of his eyes. She _was_ dead, it hadn't sunk in enough yet, not really, he'd not grasped that she was no longer by his side.

"I love you, Star, and I n-never got to tell you." He sniffed, crying and shaking as he was – he put everything he could into that one phrase.

Robin stayed on that floor, next to the Tamaranean girl for the next hour – just thinking about all the times they'd shared and the ones he'd now have to live alone. He just had to share them now, with her empty body.

It was even longer before anything broke the sounds of him sobbing, none of his fellow Titans walked in and he was thankful. His best friend might be dead, but he needed to keep his identity secret.

Suddenly the door crashed open, "Robin, step back!" Cyborg screamed, his gun out as he shot Starfire's body.

Robin was stunned into silence as he placed his mask back on, rage filled him when he saw Starfire's body pinned to the wall by Cyborg.

"She's dead! Isn't that enough!" Robin screamed, attacking his half-mechanical friend.

"Get off me!" Cyborg yelled, kicking his friend off, "It's not Star!" He told him.

Robin froze, not sure whether to believe him – he'd felt her cold, hard exterior and though he'd not seen her face...it was Star – it had to be.

"You're being absurd, of course it's Star!" He yelled, though he dared to dream that she was still alive.

"Oh yeah? Lift her hood." Cyborg demanded, pointing over angrily to Raven's cape.

"Raven said–"

"_Raven_ attacked us; turns out she's made of electrical circuits and wires." Cyborg said, "Some drone Slade wired up was posing as her."

"B-But she used–"

"It was a projection of laser technology, advanced stuff – Slade's getting good." Cyborg said, walking over to the supposed body of Starfire and bought it over to Robin, "Let's see what's under here..." He said, lifting it.

The boys jumped back when they saw Starfire's face, only broken up with wires and light-up eyes that were flickering on and off.

"Does this mean...?" Robin asked, touching the robot's broken circuits.

"I don't know what it means...but I have a feeling that Red X is working with Slade." Cyborg said, getting up off the floor and helping Robin up. "I thought something was up when I felt how hard she was...but she was still limp."

"And Slade has both Raven, and Starfire." Robin stated, catching up with his thoughts. "I-I was so scared, so hurt..." He sighed, rubbing his wonky mask and tripping slightly.

"We all were, but you've got to be strong for her now – or that panic surge might become a reality." Cyborg said, helping him up and out of the horrid warehouse.

"Alright, I got the demon-girl." Red X said, throwing her down at Slade's feet. "Where's my cut?" He asked.

"My, my...you don't hang about, do you?" Slade asked in his eerie voice, slow and confident.

"Why should I? You only live once, and waiting _wastes_ time." He said, twirling an X-Shaped Shuriken around his finger.

"Patience is a virtue." Slade replied, clicking his fingers.

The simple gesture had the demon-girl collected by some robots and taken to where her friend was being held captive.

"Yeah, yeah, thought you might want to know I drugged the both of them – who knows what they think is happening." Red X chuckled, "Now, why do you want them anyway?" He asked.

"Do you always snoop in such an obvious way?" Slade asked, stepping forwards in the attempt to intimidate the smaller man.

"Yeah, it gets things done. Why? Do you beat around the bush?" He asked.

"Somewhat." He chuckled. "What I wish to do with these young heroes is nothing to do with you, you have played your part and you'll be rewarded for it." He said, giving him a bag of money. "Come back and you'll be shot."

"That's incentive enough for me..." Red X joked, teleporting out of Slade's lair.

"What a shame he's not sadistic...I liked him." Slade said to himself, thinking about who he could use as his next apprentice after Robin and Terra.

"What you think Slade wants with the girls?" Beast Boy asked, twiddling his thumbs agitatedly – he was so nervous, and not to mention anxious.

"Us," Robin said darkly, "He knows we'll never leave them." Robin answered from the front of the T-Car.

They'd all decided to travel together, it made them harder to detect on radar – no doubt that Slade's lair would be crawling with advanced equipment considering what they'd seen already.

"Why take them both? If he stores them together – or even near each other – they'll break out." He asked.

"Because the more of us that are in there...the less of us there are to break in and fight." Cyborg answered, stepping on it and pushing the car to its limits.

"Regardless, we're going to get them back and defeat Slade." Robin said defiantly, ready for anything Slade could throw at them.

"This ain't no small-time criminal Rob, we've gotta be stealthy...delicate." Cyborg said.

"Because your body has the ability to be stealthy..." Beast Boy muttered.

"That's why you're going in first; you're going to deactivate the alarm system." Cyborg grinned, slamming on the brakes so that the little green boy slammed into the windscreen.

"It would be an honour." Beast Boy groaned, rubbing his nose.

Cyborg's equipment had found Raven's locator quickly – apparently Red X couldn't pull off the same trick twice and had left it intact.

"You know the plan?" Robin asked Beast Boy.

"Go in, turn off the alarms, come and get you...kick butt?" Beat Boy said, asking for approval.

"Alright." Cyborg nodded, pushing his friend forwards as him and Robin stayed put – watching Beast Boy turn into an ant and quickly make his way through the door and into the building.

Soon enough, Beast Boy was in the control room and staring at the hundreds of controls.

"Aw maaaaan..." He sighed.

"Raven!" Starfire called, stroking the creepy-girls face slowly and rhythmically to try and calmly rouse her. "Raven, you must be waking up in the now." She told her.

Raven stirred slightly and Starfire smiled and kept caressing her face – it seemed to help her friend not to panic.

"Starfire?" She asked in a groggy voice, looking up and seeing a distant memory in front of her. "Am I dead?"

"What?" The Tamaranean asked, confused.

"I saw your body, you looked so...peaceful." Raven smiled, reaching up to stroke her fellow heroes face.

"Raven, we are not dead." She told her, helping her to sit up, "Someone has kidnapped us, I think," She said, rubbing her head, "My head is telling me that I found Robin unconscious after a fight...he was so broken and bruised...you couldn't heal him." She said, tears forming in her eyes, "Please, tell me he is of good health..."

"Starfire, it wasn't him that was like that – it was you." She said, "We found you in Red X's warehouse...you were stone cold and not breathing...you were _dead_." She said, reaching out to touch her alien friend's warm cheek, "But you're not now." She said, rubbing her head.

"I have the feeling..." Starfire said, rubbing her head like Raven.

"Which one?"

"The one that means we're – as Cyborg calls it – _screwed_." She sighed, "Friend Raven, what do the others think happened?"

"I don't know, I know that you and Robin went to the bank, Red X was stealing some money and he took you somewhere using the teleportation." She said. "We looked for you for hours, and then I'm not sure what happened..." She admitted.

"Tell the story." Starfire said, taking her hand and holding it tightly – for her own support more than anything but it seemed to help Raven.

"I searched most of Jump City with Beast Boy; we broke off just before we got a call from Cyborg saying he'd managed to find the teleportation residue." She said, shuffling so that she was more comfortable. "I went into the Warehouse where I could hear Cyborg...and saw you in his arms." She said, her voice breaking slightly.

"Do not be sad, friend Raven, I am here." She smiled encouragingly, "See, I do not have the scathes." She showed Raven her arms.

"Maybe we can build up the truth," Raven said, putting her hood up, "What happened in your story?" She asked.

Starfire sighed, feeling a pain in her chest as she remembered.

"I went to the bank, and was teleported by Red X." She said, so far they were in sync, "We went to a warehouse and I was bound for a while." She said, stopping there – not wanting to get into the panicked moments. "Then, I was shot with something – it hurt greatly." She said, pointing to her leg to show Raven the bruise and the slight gash.

"It must have been real." She nodded, "But I have a feeling that I was tricked, and you were hallucinating." She said, "Go on."

"Friend Cyborg came through the wall not long after, you restrained villain Red X and I was saved by Beast Boy. We went back home and I was taken to the infirmary." She sighed, rubbing her eyes to hide the tears, "Robin was lying there, and he was not well." She sobbed slightly. "I went to help him, but his blood was already covering me – Slade had attacked him while I was not there to protect him."

"Star...that didn't happen, don't worry." Raven said, not completely sure, but sure enough to make a promise on. "I promise you that he's still alive."

_His health...I'm not too sure about, he thinks you're dead._

"I am alive, but you thought I wasn't – you said that you saw my body..." Starfire said, wanting to change the subject.

"Yeah, I lay you down on the floor, checked to see what had ended your life...then everything went black before I could figure anything out." She admitted, rubbing her head. "The very next second, I'm here."

"You have no damage?" The Tamaranean asked.

"No," She said, looking around her body to find not one scratch but a little singe on the corner of her cape – it was electrical damage.

"You were electrocuted, as was I." Starfire said, showing her the damage to her own clothing.

"That _would_ make sense..." She nodded, "But how would I be able to see...and _feel_ your body if you weren't there, though?" Raven asked, becoming suspicious. "You might not be the real Starfire." She hissed.

"Friend Raven?" Starfire asked, trying to follow the girl inching away from her.

"Don't come any closer." Raven said, trying to project a force-field but it didn't work. "What?" She asked, looking at her hands before trying again, "Azarath Metrion Zinthos!" She chanted.

Again, this did nothing and she panicked, trying again and again to put something between the Starfire imposter and herself.

"Friend Raven, we are unable to use our powers in here – see?" She said, punching the wall and showing her friend her bleeding knuckles.

Raven sighed; it wasn't a robot – so at least she had her friend safe with her...or as safe as you could be when you were captured.

"Are you the real Raven?" Starfire asked after a while.

_Oh yeah, that's Star._ Raven thought to herself.

"If I wasn't, would I tell you?" She rolled her eyes.

"You're Raven." Starfire said, standing up and looking out of the small window they had – but all she could see was a metal hallway.

"ACHOO!" Starfire sneezed suddenly, throwing herself back with a starbolt out of her nose – the impact of her hitting the wall damaged her back but only minimally.

However, the same story couldn't be said for Raven's clothing – her cloak was in tatters and her leotard had a huge hole where her right sleeve should have been and a gaping gash on her stomach.

"What just happened?" Raven asked, keeping her distance from the Tamaranean with...a _cold_?

There is Metallic Chromium here...I am what your planet call '_allergic'_ to it." She told Raven, wiping her nose. "If I get too close to it, I s-snee-ACHOO!" She sneezed again, flying back into the wall. "It seems whatever is stopping our powers can't control my snot-bolts." She sighed, sniffing.

"And it didn't happen when we were talking..._because_?" Raven asked, wary.

"Because the doors weren't open." Starfire said, pointing to the window where Raven could see a guard walking in through the door. "It's air-tight in here."

"Wait a second..." Raven froze, so did Starfire, "Isn't Metallic Chromium really rare?" She asked.

"On this planet, I believe so." Starfire told her.

"And the only other time we've come into contact with it is..." She went quiet, her eyes widening.

"Slade." Starfire whispered.

The second she said his name, his voice came through the speaker within their cell and the girls screamed in shock. Though Raven soon recovered and calmed down.

"Ha-ha-ha." He laughed slowly, evilly. "You Teen Titans are smart...aren't you?" He asked rhetorically, "Awake for mere minutes and they already know what happened..." He chuckled.

"Capturing people is not very nice." Starfire scolded him, wagging her finger at the speaker.

Raven turned her so that she was facing the little camera in the corner of their cell, it would have been comical if they weren't in so much danger.

"I'm not a nice person, some say I'm evil." Slade joked sadistically, "Though I am surprised that you haven't asked yourself, in the twelve minutes and thirty-nine seconds that at least one of you have been conscious, why you're here..." He said, pulling out all the stops to be superior.

"Why ask ourselves when we can ask you?" Raven asked, standing in front of the furious Tamaranean and looking into the camera. "Why are we here, Slade?"

"You're a little too sarcastic for your own good." Slade snapped, flicking a switch and watching the girl writhe in pain as the floor flooded with electricity.

Starfire – weakened by whatever device that he had acquired to take away their powers – collapsed first to her hands and knees; feeling generous, Slade stopped the electricity then and cleared his throat.

"You'd be wise you speak when spoken to, young Titans." He told them.

"But you were speaking to us." Starfire said, confused.

"Uh-uh-uh...naïve little girl." Slade said, turning on the electricity again but only on the square she was standing on.

Raven watched as the electricity was intensified and her friend was subjected to thousands of volts being thrown around her system.

"AH!" She screamed, tears falling from her eyes as smoke began to come from her body.

"Please, stop!" Raven called to the camera, wanting to put herself in the place of her friend but knowing that both of them being weakened would just be foolish – she had to watch her friend being tortured.

"What's it worth?" Slade asked, turning up the volts higher.

Starfire's screams intensified and she convulsed slightly, her face twisted into agony. She'd never been this weak in her life; she was practically below a human's strength now.

"Put me in her place!" Raven said, turning to look at the Tamaranean girl and then to the camera.

"Not good enough, Rae-Rae..." He said, turning up the volts further.

Starfire let out a bloodcurdling scream.

"RAVEN!" She screeched, reaching out for her friend.

"PLEASE!" Raven yelled, some of her magic being produced despite the device that Slade had installed.

This didn't escape _her_ notice, but it _did_ escape Slade's. The demon-girl had a plan, but she'd have to undo everything she'd done in her years of training; all discipline would have to be forgotten.

She looked at Starfire suffering, listened to the screaming and tried to feel every bit of rage and upset that she could have in her system – normally this kind of emotion would open up a black hole but today it was just creating a normal-sized shield which she used to smash the tiles around the room – stopping the torture to her friend.

But before she could execute her plan to escape the confines of the room, she heard something from the speakers.

"TITANS, GO!"

"Robin!" Raven sighed in relief, letting her powers swell just long enough to break the door to her cell before she regained control of herself.

Raven stood there ranting, and rubbing her bare shoulder soothingly – thinking about calming, tranquil things that wouldn't make her powers react badly.

When she opened her eyes she saw the door at the side of their cell was weakened and falling down, a small device had fallen to the floor and was flickering on and off – in synchronization with how powerful she felt. She walked over to it and crushed it with her foot, feeling all the power within her revert to where it should have been and would stay.

Finally, the lights around the hallways Raven could hear – and now see – lights and alarms going off signifying that her friends were here to save her and Starfire.

Remembering Starfire and her probable condition; Raven looked back to see the Tamaranean girl on the floor, panting heavily as her body would jolt and twitch frequently.

"Starfire!" Raven called out, dropping to her side and rolling her over so that she was on her side – so she wouldn't choke. "Are you alright?" She asked, looking at her eyes reacting strangely to the light and her skin pale ever so slightly but her cheeks were flushed.

"Raven?" She heard from the speakers, it was Cyborg in the control room.

"Yeah, it's us." She nodded, "Star's not looking too good." She sighed, "But she's alive." She smiled, rubbing her cheek carefully.

She heard Cyborg's relieved smiled and sigh as he gave Beast Boy directions on how to find the girls.

"Alright, Rae, we're coming to get you." He said, clicking the intercom off.

It was a matter of minutes before Raven saw Cyborg, Beast Boy and Robin arrive at the cell door. Immediately they rushed over, Cyborg gathered Starfire into his arms and Robin helped Raven up – it seemed that a certain amount of power being exerted from her body weakened her.

Beast Boy cleared the way, morphing into a Rhinoceros and crashing through several walls – landing them just by the T-Car.

"We've got to get out of here quickly." Robin said, clicking his remote and helping Raven into the car.

"Slade wasn't there?" Cyborg asked, starting the car, Starfire still on his lap.

"What do you think?" He snapped angrily.

It was days before Starfire next opened her eyes, she was met with an empty room and the sound of her heart beating on a monitor...it was unsteady and the chart showed that she'd flat-lined a few times.

"Greetings, Heartbeat." She smiled to herself, touching the machine and silently thanking it for keeping her alive.

She looked at her hand and saw that there was an IV being held there with a metal strap – her body must have rejected it several times.

_The desperate times and measures taken during them..._

She was propped up in the bed; apparently a few people had been in here because there were chairs all around her and even empty plates where people had had their meals in there with her sleeping form.

_I hope they were not worried. _She thought guiltily to herself._ Perhaps I should call them._

Though she wanted to call her friends, she wasn't sure what she was going to do to grab their attention – they were probably all out fighting crime but one...and then that person was probably trying to keep tabs on the city – _perhaps I shall just stay waiting._

Looking down her body, Starfire could see that she'd lost a lot of weight and most of her body was in bandages – but the last thing should could remember was screaming. Whether it was her own screaming, she couldn't remember.

_Is friend Raven alright?_ She asked herself in a panic, her body jumping up.

A screech made its way out of her body as some form of skin ripped open from the sudden movement, the pain caused her chest to heave with sobs that wouldn't come out as tears – she was panting violently and her heart rate was through the roof.

She'd not wanted to bother whoever was in the tower but she was in too much pain to keep silent and she screamed again, a bloodcurdling screech echoed through the tower and indeed quite a few people on the mainland would have heard it.

Almost immediately all the Titans were downstairs, fumbling through the doorway. Cyborg ran to the heart-monitor and looked at the history of it to check for abnormalities – of course, there were too many to count.

Raven ran to Starfire's side and held her down against the bed – it hurt her back beyond comprehension and she cried out again.

"Starfire?" Raven asked, letting the Tamaranean girl go for fear of hurting her further.

The alien pulled herself to the side, tried as hard as she could to roll over and give her back a rest but her wrists rebelled and she ended up falling onto her back – tears streamed down her face as she tried to tell them what was wrong.

"Her wrists!" Robin called out, placing her on her back again.

Another scream, Robin jumped back and fought tears at the thought of him causing her so much pain.

"No, it's her back!" Beast Boy said observantly, picking her up out of the bed she was originally in and moving her to the one next to her, it was flat and allowed her to lie on her front and rest her back.

The sobs quietened as the alien calmed down, but they never stopped fully – exhaustion was the thing to finally quieten her enough for anyone to speak.

"Is she alright now?" Robin asked, looking down at his friend sleeping restlessly.

"No, two flat-lines in one day are dangerous for anyone..." Cyborg said, taking his glasses off. "If she doesn't get better soon then I don't think she'll ever be able to leave here again..." He sighed, rubbing his temple.

"So she'll be...disabled?" Beast Boy asked, looking over at his supposedly now handy-capable friend.

"She won't want to live like that." Raven said, stroking the side of her face in a rare show of affection that was becoming more frequent towards her suffering friend, "She'd think it was a burden on us all."

"What do you mean?" Beast Boy asked, looking at Cyborg's sad face and Raven's closed eyes – not wanting to accept the truth.

"It means she's going to die, Beast Boy, whether she kills herself or otherwise." Robin snapped, leaving the room.

"Here you go, Star." Robin said, lifting the bottle so she could drink from it.

She was hesitant, not liking the fact that everyone had to do things for her – especially when Raven had to help her go to the toilet...and the one time Robin had to.

"I am not thirsty." She told him, turning her head away.

He sighed, rubbing his eyes to clear the angry pulse in the lids.

"Star, your charts say now is when your body is thirsty, you can't lie." He told her, raising the bottle so that the teat would go into her mouth.

"I do not like milk." She told him stubbornly.

"Well, your body needs the calcium." He told her, holding her chin in his hand and placing the teat of the bottle in her mouth.

"Rob–" She tried to argue against him but the liquid was already in her mouth and she had to swallow.

After she'd been force-fed the whole bottle, she glared at Robin and the bottle.

"I'm sorry, Star, but it's the only way you're going to get better." He told her, stroking the side of her sweaty face to calm her down some.

"Yes, because lying in bed all day and only just managing to feed one's self is a goal to want to reach, Robin." She snapped.

"You know it's not going to be like that..." Robin lied, sighing.

"Y–" She was cut off by the milk resurfacing – spilling from her mouth down her chin and onto her chest.

"Oh, Star." He whispered, seeing her eyes well up with shameful tears.

He grabbed some cleaning equipment off the side and began mopping it up from her face and her neck. The tears fell as he started to pat the milk off her chest – if she was well then she'd have slapped him for touching her there but all she could do was close her eyes and pretend it was all a dream.

"Star, I need to change you." Robin told her, pulling her out of her thoughts.

"...Very well..." She nodded, turning her head to the side so she didn't have to look at Robin's reaction to her body again.

The first time he'd changed her, he'd been too rough and she'd writhed about for half an hour naked while he tried to cover her up. The second time he'd attempted, a few weeks later, he'd gasped at seeing her injuries and blamed himself for the next three days. And now, the hundredth time he'd done it, he'd be so gentle and wary that she didn't even care anymore that he was seeing her naked – she'd lost her fight, her spark. _Herself._

"C'mon Star, just a little farther." Cyborg encouraged, holding his arms out ready to catch her.

"I am walking again, friend Cyborg!" She squealed, falling into his arms and hugging him weakly.

"BOOYAH!" He said, pumping his fist into the air triumphantly.

"May I try again?" She asked, giving him the puppy-dog-eyes she'd learned to use against all the titans while she was in the infirmary.

"Yeah, see if you can make it back to the bed." He grinned, helping her to stand properly and making sure she could hold her weight before he ran over to the bed.

Starfire was wobbly but she walked more confidently, her strength was returning very quickly and Cyborg could estimate that she'd be back to her old self in a few months of physiotherapy and exercises.

It seemed so long ago that they all thought that the little Tamaranean girl wasn't going to make it through the winter. Her vitals were dropping by the day and she couldn't be left alone. She still had to have her bandages changed daily and different stretches to make sure that her body didn't set wrong – but she was on the steady road to recovery.

"Go, Starfire!" She heard from beside her.

She looked over to see Beast Boy and Raven cheering her on excitedly, she grinned, feeling elated that her friends were there for her. She collapsed into Cyborg's arms and was placed onto the bed, panting.

"Friends! I did good, yes?" She asked with a wide grin.

"That was amazing, Star!" Beast Boy cheered, hugging her lightly.

"I'm proud of you." Raven smiled, handing the girl a baby bottle with some milk in it, "Sorry, it's all we had in the house that heats well..."

Starfire made a grimace at the funny-coloured substance – it was her least favourite thing to drink but it was what was keeping her muscles and bones in working order – eventually she placed the teat in her mouth and took a big pull of the warm mixture.

It tasted of the disgusting produce of cows and then her medication mixed in – at least it was easier than giving her injections or trying to swallow the pills whole.

She scrunched up her face when the mush at the bottom couldn't come through the teat very quickly and she had to taste it all.

"Come on, only a little left now." Raven said, holding the bottle up so that she'd have to drink it all or choke on it.

Right now though, she didn't care if she drowned in it – this was hell.

When she'd finished she coughed and wiped her tongue of the flavour, the group watched her in amusement and Raven handed her a separate bottle of warmed mustard.

"I think that your system might be able to handle this now...try it out." She said warily, handing it her slowly.

"I do not think–"

"Star, it's your favourite food in the world...don't you just want to _see_?" Beast Boy asked, wiggling his eyebrow at her.

She looked between him and the bottle a few times before placing the teat in her mouth and pulling a little bit of the delicious mixture into her mouth – it made her smile when she didn't immediately vomit but she got too hasty and she coughed up a mouthful of mustard and milk over her front.

She groaned and wiped it off as best she could, but she needed help from Cyborg to get it all off. It was times like this that she felt invalid, a person to be cared for and waited on – not someone of equal value. She felt rather demined when she would get praise for simply eating a biscuit and not coughing it up – but she needed to keep them all convinced that she was enjoying getting better. Though that isn't what she'd call it exactly.

It didn't matter that some of the milk had come up, the medicine was especially designed for those who couldn't keep much in their system – it soaked into the throat on the way down and made its way around the body...even if _everything_ came back up again.

"Where is Robin?" She asked. Her voice was raspy from vomiting and embarrassment.

At the mention of Robin, the whole team shuffled uncomfortably and Starfire knew the answer. He didn't want to see her.

She sighed, "I think it is time to retire for the evening time." She told them, checking her bandages on her hands and arms before having the boys assist her to lie down.

"Of course, goodnight Starfire." Raven said, flicking off most of the lights and plugging in the heart monitor – discretely connecting it to the alarm system.

Though they were sure that she wouldn't go into cardiac arrest again, they couldn't and wouldn't take the chance – so she was hooked up to the alarm system and the second she dropped under fifty, the alarm sounded.

"Sleep well; we'll play a videogame tomorrow." Beast Boy said.

Six Months Later

"It's your first mission after...what happened, are you sure you're ready?" Robin asked, he'd been against letting her go on this small-time robbery the whole day but she'd been adamant.

"Robin, I have long since been well enough to handle this mission." She told him, her face angry as she grabbed her communicator and checked that her legs were bandaged around the knees well enough.

"But you're still not completely well..." He said, passing her the leggings that she had to wear for a little while – she was still temperature sensitive and would be for a few more weeks.

"The bandages are a precaution, friend Cyborg repeats that I no longer require them." She told him with a nod, "Please stop asking now."

He nodded meekly before setting off towards the T-Car.

They arrived quickly, all of the force going despite the lack of need for it – no one was taking any chances with the pushy Starfire. She wanted to fight so there was no stopping her but...she should have been stopped – it was too dangerous.

She'd been restless ever since she was able to change herself – mostly – and she was eager to try and get her spark back, the respect that she'd once received from the Teen Titans for being such a good fighter. For being strong.

It was a small-time robbery, planned a few weeks ago – the Teen Titans had known all about it and were stopping it before it got to the bank, and stop it they did.

_I will show Robin who is well enough to fight..._

"STARFIRE! THERE ARE CHILDREN–" Robin screamed.

But it was too late.

**Well, erm, yeah...that was shorter when I was writing it – I swear!**

**Alright, so, is everyone up to date with what's going on? I know it was a long introduction, but I am only setting the scene for what's coming up.**

**This is a very confusing story, I'll admit it, and if there's anything you're unsure about – send me an email and I'll be happy to clear it up with you.**

**Please rate and review, I am one of those people who need to be told I'm doing well/shit for it to get through my thick skull. **

**Thank you for reading my work!**

**Jade.**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter One

_Beep. Beep. Beep._

Groans and muffled grumbles came from under the covers of the beds; several bodies were dotted around in various beds – though some were empty.

_Beep. Beep. Beep._

Several minutes passed while the occupants of the room could ignore it – but suspecting this when they set the alarm...

_BEEP. BEEP. BEEP._

...It sounded louder...

_BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!_

...and louder...

_**BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!**_

...and louder still.

"SOMEONE TURN IT OFF!"

"YOU TURN IT OFF!"

"I ASKED _SOMEONE_ _ELSE_ TO, YOU JUMPED UP FUCKER!"

"Lazy bitch."

"I HEARD THAT!"

"YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO!"

"She's going to kill you, with the alarm clock, and then I'm going back to sleep."

"NO, I HAD TO TURN THE ALARM OFF; SO I'M COMING TO GET _YOU_ NEXT!"

"EEP!"

Several bodies crawled out of their beds and stumbled into their different changing rooms – it was a strange system that seemed to work. Of course, those who wore masks never took them off in front of the others.

"RAVEN?"

"What?" She asked in a normal voice, sticking her head out of the changing room.

"WHERE'S MY SUIT HEADIN'?" Cyborg yelled, looking around to see that all his components were missing and dotted around the room randomly.

"DUDES, STOP SHOUTING! _SOME_ OF US STILL HAVE EARDRUMS!" Beast Boy screeched, holding his spinning head. "And had too much to drink last night..." He commented before throwing up in the sink.

"I told you not to drink." Speedy chuckled from the room over.

"While I was drinking!" Beast Boy yelled between episodes of barfing.

"Not my fault you started early..." Speedy pointed out.

"Fuck off." He snapped before completely emptying his stomach into the sink. "I'll be staying away from tofu for a month..." He sighed, a growling noise coming from his already protesting stomach.

"Finally, you're just like everyone else now!" Cyborg whooped from his changing room.

Suddenly the room was flashing red and the alarms were sounding, "TITANS, GO!" The group heard over the intercom.

"Aw, man!" Beast Boy whined, clutching his stomach, "This sucks."

"Your fault for drinking..." Raven muttered as she levitated past him.

**I love Raven! And even though I hate love-stories, or hate writing them at least, I don't like her paired off with anyone other than Beast Boy – it's just too funny.**

**This is what I imagine a group of nineteen and twenty year-old superheroes live like, oh, and the reason they sleep in the same room is because they're renovating all of the bedrooms – there's a funny spin-off story to that involving BB and a bedazzler.**

**Jade.**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Two

_Beep. Beep. Beep._

"Ugh..." Kori groaned, rolling over.

_Beep. Beep. Beep._

She slammed her hand onto the top of the alarm clock, it crushed under her strength and she groaned.

_Beep. Beep...Beep._

It sounded pathetic and sorry for itself, and now that the off-switch was destroyed...well...it was only going to shut up one way...

_Make an off switch._

"I'm up, I'm up..." She grunted, punching the table – weakly for her, but nonetheless – it crushed the rest of the alarm clock easily enough.

Dragging herself out of the bed, she grabbed a baggy shirt and pulled it over her bare body – _why bother wearing night-clothes when you live alone? _– And making her way out of her cramped, messy room.

"Fuck off." She cursed at the lamp cord wrapped around her ankles.

With her eyes hardly open, she made her way through the slim hall and down the broken stairs to the kitchen – if you could call it that.

_But its home...until Batman has another freak-out, that is._

Fixing a minimal breakfast of slightly-off milk and stale cereal, Kori made her way through the boxes and clothing to come out in her lounge – which was also, conveniently, her wardrobe.

Scattered all over the room were different combinations of clothes – both fashionable and practical – that she'd washed and ironed.

_Not that I'm a domestic Goddess though..._

Picking up a navy-blue, high-wasted skirt with gold coloured buttons on and a white shirt, she headed to the dining table – _panty-stand_ – and grabbed a matching set of bra and panties. Deciding that tights would be a good idea since it looked cold out; she grabbed a pair off the radiator and got dressed in the hallway, tripping over everything she passed.

"Ugh." She groaned, knocking her head on the stairs.

Brushing through her hair – not bothering with styling it anymore than usual – just to make sure it looked alright. Her fringe was a little too shiny to look human but she just shrugged and stumbled over to her make-up box.

Drawing a line of black, liquid eyeliner on top of each eyelid, pulling them out into an elegant flick, she put on some crimson red lipstick and hunted out some shoes.

Today would be like any other day, she'd go to work, answer calls...file paperwork...beat off Shaun, and maybe she'd go out for lunch, alone. But that was it. Then she'd come home, go for a run and be back in time to collapse onto the sofa and watch the Jerry Springer show until the late hours of the night with a glass of wine and a packet of crisps.

After she'd brushed her teeth and found her bag, she locked up the shit-hole she called a home and tip-toed over the muddy grass of her apartment's parking towards her car.

From the outside, her car looked fine, and on the inside, it looked fine. But when you started the engine...

_CRANK! GROAN! SQUEEK! SNAP!_

"Goddamn it, you piece of shit." She huffed, willing the handbrake to come off. "This is going to be a bad day..." She told herself when the car finally reversed thirteen tries later.

As usual, her car rejected the handbrake when she wanted to park it in the parking lot, and she had to get out and manually put it on – her Tamaranean strength always helped.

Now she was late, and as she ran into the high office building she was stared at angrily by the people already working. Her heels _clanked_ and _clonked_ on the floor noisily and just drew in more and more attention. Eventually – after what felt like a lifetime – she fell into her seat and started the computer quickly, planning on getting all her work done quickly so she could go home.

"Late again?" She heard from behind her, making her jump slightly.

She turned and glared at her 'superior', "Yeah...car troubles." She said quickly, turning back around and putting on her headset.

"Oh yeah, I forgot people had those..." She said in her squeaky voice that made Kori's stomach churn.

"_Those of us who aren't fucking the boss have them..._" Kori muttered to herself.

"SO..." Kitten said. Her voice was distinctly like nails down a chalkboard as she wheeled herself next to Kori. The Tamaranean gritted her teeth as she turned to the nosy, obnoxious bitch beside her. "What are you doing tonight?" She asked with a lick of her Barbie-pink lips.

"I'm going to go home, at five o'clock." She answered, trying to show how much she didn't want to talk to Kitten without actually saying it – after all, she could get fired if she said the wrong thing.

"Well _I'm_ going round to Harvey's..." She grinned, going goo-goo eyed.

"Good for you." Kori said, typing in the first number she had to call.

"He's taking me to 'The Plaza'; it's the most expensive restaurant in town..." She wittered on as someone answered Kori on the other end of the phone.

"Yes, hello, I would like to just clarify Mr. Dent's appointment with you." Kori said, yawning while they answered in an equally bored tone.

"_Then_ we're going back to his place...the sex is amazing – I remember last week when he tied me to the bed and covered me in–" Kori cut her off.

"–Kitten!" Kori called out, silencing her to save the contents of her stomach. "Can you send Harvey an email telling him that K-Vac confirm their support? Thanks." Kori said with a fake smile, clicking the 'End Call' button at the same time.

"Oh yeah, I'll come back in a minute." She said with a wink.

"Please don't." Kori groaned and slammed her head off the desk, "This is going to be a very, _very_ bad day."

Lunchtime came and as usual, Shaun came over and asked her out.

"Hey, Kori." He said, running his hand though his bouncy hair and giving her a 'good look' at his pectorals.

"Hello, Shaun." She answered, stapling some papers together, not even giving him the time of day.

"So, Kori," He grinned, sitting on her desk in the way of her computer with his crotch by her face as she bent down, "Want to go out to lunch?" He asked, getting up close in her face and breathing distasteful mint all over her, "Maybe afterwards we could, you know, go to the movies – you've got tonnes of time-off you've not used."

Kori mentally rolled her eyes, "That sounds nice, but you've got no time-off left." She said, trying to delicately wriggle out of it.

Kori never had time off; she even worked Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Years. She did this because she didn't have a social life, she didn't have friends to speak of – because she wasn't allowed them – and she didn't want to make any.

_Ever_ _again_.

"I don't mind getting a grilling if it's time spent with you..." He said smoothly, putting his hand on her shoulder and lightly touching her breast.

Kori raised her eyebrow, "Well I think Harvey would blame me, and I need this job." She told him, removing his hand.

He sat more obviously in her way when she tried to look around his abs – he was attractive, she knew – but it didn't matter what someone looked like, Kori just wasn't interested in dating anyone.

_Ever_ _again_.

"Fine, we'll just go out for lunch." He said, getting to within an inch from her face and grinning, rubbing his knee along her leg, "We don't even need plates...I was made in China." He suggested with a wink.

"Ugh," She shivered, pushing him off the desk and making a phone call too quickly for him to even suggest another way of having sex in their lunch break.

The door to Kori's apartment was stiff and she had to kick it open, the hinges breaking for the third time that month.

"Fuck." She cursed, propping the door up as best she could before she went off in search of a screwdriver.

_I can't afford the central heating!_

The boxes seemed to crowd her even more today and she fell over them several times, her frustration overflowing as beams of green energy shot out of her eyes into the side of one of the boxes – launching it out of the doorway.

_Great, I'm moving again._ She glared as people on the street stared at her glowing eyes. _Stupid Batman, I didn't need to move in the first place, she hardly saw me!_

Remnants of what was once inside the box were scattered all over the lawn of her apartment building but she couldn't be less bothered about it, well...she couldn't care less at that moment in time. They were photographs and she'd eventually get very upset about some of them being destroyed.

She just sighed and walked into the kitchen and opened the drawer – all the lights still off as she stumbled about trying to find a light switch. When she couldn't, she lit her hand with a starbolt – which she hadn't done in years and so it took some effort to light originally – and held it so she could see the contents of the drawer.

But as she moved the light around, in the corner of her eye, she could see that she wasn't alone in her kitchen – and she wasn't expecting any company.

Immediately she jumped into action and threw several starbolts towards the intruder, the shadow of a man leapt out of the way easily and grabbed her around the throat, pulling her back and jabbing a knife into her back – in the perfect angle to drive it into her heart. She wouldn't be able to struggle free from him without being stabbed – and that would prove fatal.

_And as emo-esque as I am...I don't want to die._

"What do you want?" She snapped at him, trying to struggle free without stabbing herself – but obviously he followed her movements easily and kept it touching her lightly. "You sick bastard." She snarled, gritting her teeth angrily.

"Why Starfire...is that any way to greet an old _friend_?" She heard.

With a drop of her jaw, Starfire ceased her struggling and froze up – letting her starbolts disappear as she tried not to scream. Her body shook slightly as she thought about who was holding her...who was supposed to be dead but was just standing there, in _her_ kitchen after six years of severed contact with the Titans.

"What's happened to that fighting spirit? It wasn't the accident, was it?" He chuckled darkly.

With a swift flick of his wrist he'd moved her head to the side to inspect her face better, looking at the changes in it – in her whole body, in fact.

"Why are you here?" She asked him, her voice shaky but at least it didn't break.

He grinned under his mask, "You're a smart girl, think." He told her, stroking her face and playing with her hair absentmindedly.

"I-I haven't spoken to the Titans in six years...I'm j-just a civilian now; a member of the witness protection programme." She told him, her body now in a perfect arch as she tried to avoid the knife and his touches.

"I see you've changed a lot since those days – you even speak normally now..." He chuckled, grabbing a fistful of her hair and pulling her gently towards his face, "I'm not after the Titans...well...not yet."

"Still one to play games, I see." She said in a sudden burst of anger and fear – she hated not knowing what was happening or what her fate was going to be.

"Life is built on different games, little Tamaranean." He told her with a light touch to her neck, "If you promise to play my game, with my rules...I'll let you go." He whispered in her ear.

Her emerald eyes opened wider, she wanted her freedom, but could she trust him to not stab her in the back – literally?

"Why are you here?" She asked him again, ceasing her struggling completely.

He let go of her hair and let her straighten out of the arch, but she was mindful of the weapons he probably had stored in his utility belt and turned very slowly to face the substance of her nightmares.

"I have a little proposition for you." He said, his eyes tightening, "It's one I don't think you can refuse." He told her.

"I want _nothing_ to do with you, please leave." She snapped at him, her eyes lighting up green but she managed to keep her starbolts from lighting up.

"You don't even want to hear it? Aren't you..._curious_?" He asked in a whisper, walking around her and running his finger along her shoulders – making her shiver. "You certainly have changed," He commented, looking at her above-the-knee skirt and curvaceous body complimentary and admiring, "But then, so have I." He told her, flicking her chin playfully – she wasn't amused.

"Are you still a criminal?" She asked.

"Why, of course." He chuckled, "But I have a more...secure goal now – and I _know_ what I want." He told her.

"Whatever you want...I don't have it." She said quickly, trying to wriggle out of his _proposition_, as he called it.

"Oh but you do..." He told her, gripping her shoulders and looking deep into her eyes, "You harbour the hatred for what I want to destroy most in the world." He reasoned.

"_You_, I want _you_ dead." She snapped.

He paused and smiled, she had more character now, despite what the files had said – she was fiery and a force to be reckoned with if she was treated improperly. Not sure what he was about to say, Kori glared at him harder. He moved in closer, as if to kiss her and she could do nothing but freeze into a block of ice – he brushed the side of his mask against her cheek and settled next to her ear.

"The Teen Titans." He whispered.

Kori's eyes opened wider, she dropped the screwdriver in her hand and it clattered to the floor noisily in the deathly silence that had settled like dust around them.

**Hehe! I love annoying people, I love the cliffy's I leave you with...**

**As much as I try to hide it, I love changing the way Koriand'r/Starfire's way of speaking, it's just annoying to type – and convince the Word Document you mean to type – like you have a personal problem with grammar.**

**Though, I am making it believable with the little slips in speech – yeah, that's what they are, bitch.**

**Please rate and review, I would love to hear from you!**

**Jade.**


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Three

"DUDE! That's _my_ spot!" Beast Boy groaned, glaring at where Speedy had taken his seat next to Raven.

"Well...I didn't see your name on it..." He said, looking around as if to check for the note.

"_Asshole."_ Beast Boy muttered, "_No one even likes you here anyways_..." He added.

"Just sit down, Beast Boy – this will only take a few minutes." Robin told him.

"What's this about, Robin?" Raven asked, shifting away from Speedy leaning on her. "We don't have meetings anymore." She said, motioning to the table that had been smashed from the last attempt.

"This is different." Robin told them, rubbing his head, "Its Slade, he's back."

The room went silent as they stared at him, it continued for several seconds before Speedy spoke, breaking the spell.

"WHAT? The guy was in a _volcano _last time you saw him – what is he? Fucking immortal?" He ranted, throwing his hands up in the air.

"No, he's just extremely lucky, _and_ smart." Robin said, his eyes narrowing. "He's not here in Jump; he's across...in Gotham..." He explained.

Pulling up a map of the destruction he'd caused from the satellite images, they popped up one after another and got progressively worse.

"Isn't that Batman's turf?" Cyborg asked, rubbing his head as he tried to figure out how someone could survive what Slade had.

"It was." Robin said, pulling up another image of a city called Port, "He had to move to control a bigger area...the Joker and Harley Quinn thought it was a good idea to go on a killing spree over there..." He explained.

"So Slade is there messing things up while the Big-Man's gone." Speedy stated, looking at Robin for clarification.

"He thinks he can do what he wants because Batman's gone and we're here." Robin nodded, "I need your advice." He told them.

"You can't split the team." Raven told him, reading his mind, "Taking two of us with you to Gotham won't be enough to control their usual crime rates _and_ Slade – and if you take anymore then there's either just one person to protect all of Jump City which runs the risk of ambush, or there's no one at all." She told him in her bored monotonous voice.

"That I've already thought of." Robin said, "I–" She cut him off.

"–And as helpful as Titans East is – they can't cope with an area this size without knowing the landscape and the usual data." She added, giving her own information.

"So...what is there to do?" Robin asked. He was a little annoyed at Raven's butting in, but otherwise ignored it.

"Leave one of use behind with Titans East – we all know the area and we have the know-how." Speedy said, looking around the room at his friends who glared at him – no one wanted to stay here. "Leave me here then, I know them as well as I know you and it's not like I'll be much use in Gotham." He encouraged.

"Why not?" Cyborg asked, not sure why Speedy would pass up a chance to fight Slade – he'd always tried to get in on a fight in their younger teenage years.

"Gotham holds memories for Speedy." Robin explained for him, nodding in understanding to his newest member of the team. "Are you sure that this is the right thing?" He asked him.

"Yes, there'll be five of us here, and four of you in Gotham." He said, looking around them, "You're the most competent heroes – on a par with Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman...all the big-shots – if anyone can handle Gotham while Batman's away...it's you guys." He said, prepping them for their change to a much larger city.

"Have you spoken to Batman about this?" Beast Boy asked, a little overwhelmed at the information – and the thought of being in the same city that Batman had once been in.

"Yes, and though he's not happy – he knows that Gotham needs someone." Robin sighed, "I just hoped it wasn't you guys."

"Why not?" Cyborg asked with a grin, "We've been kicking Slade's butt ever since we turned thirteen – he's just got older and slower whereas we've got faster and stronger..." He chuckled.

"You really think brawn has anything to do with it?" Raven asked with a roll of her eyes, "Slade likes to play mind games; I doubt we've ever come into contact with the real him – he used androids all the time."

"And?" Beast Boy queried.

"What's to say this is the real Slade? Anyone can pick up a remote." She explained.

"You really think that?" Robin asked, not sure why she would come up with this when he hadn't.

"It's a theory." Raven nodded, "But the only way we're going to figure this out is to get to Gotham and start searching."

"You're really...ready for this, Raven." Beast Boy observed.

Raven turned to face him, her eyes burning with fake sincerity as she answered his stupid remark, her tone blunt and to the point.

"There's a homicidal maniac let loose in a city with two and a half million people living there, he's not killing them for any reason and we have no idea how he's alive. I'd say that's a cause for haste." She snapped.

Beast Boy nodded mutely and turned to face Robin as they discussed the moving plans further.

As Robin spoke, Raven wondered off into her own head – she'd learned to do this with her eyes open and it came in handy whenever Beast Boy decided he wanted to tell her a three hour joke.

On her travels through her subconscious she found thoughts of the last time that the Titans had gone to Gotham and _why_ they'd gone.

"_She can't stay with us!" Robin yelled at Raven, pointing roughly at the mentally damaged Tamaranean blowing off steam in the containment unit, "She's a loose cannon, and what's to say she won't shoot another child, Raven?" He screamed at her._

"_It was an accident, Robin, everybody has them." Raven argued, pulling her hood down. "Do you really think she's capable of doing it again?" _

_Robin glared at the half-demon and paced towards the unit and back – trying to alleviate some of the stress that had built since the battle with Slade had occurred._

"_She did it the first time! We never thought she'd do that!" Robin snapped._

"_I did not mean to do wrong! I was only proving my worthiness!" Raven could hear from the unit, Starfire must have been shouting rather loudly for it to get through the walls of such a prison. "I am sorry; my apologies to the little girl are high and genuine!" She pleaded._

"_BE QUIET STARFIRE!" Robin screamed through the door, Raven flinched when she saw the anger in him._

_He leant against the door, panting for a few minutes before Raven made her way over to him quietly._

"_You can't just send her away, she won't understand." She told him._

"_Then we must make her understand, she can't shoot little girl's – several of them – in a fit of anger and then expect to still be a Teen Titan!" He argued with her, punching the wall and bruising his hand – but he didn't care. "She was meant to love everything, meant to be gentle and she snapped! She's damaged beyond repair, both mentally and physically, Raven!" _

"_It's not her fault she had that accident, it was Slade's. She can go into rehabilitation, more physiotherapy..." Raven said, trying to pull him away from damaging himself further._

"_She's emotionally involved; I've told her to not make ties!" He snarled, "I've _told_ her to remain detached for her own good and look what happened!" He pointed at the Tamaranean smashing around the room, "Starfire can't control her powers anymore, she can't control her emotions – she's too dangerous to have on the team. If we leave her in Jump, she'll just keep coming back!"_

"_Right now, she needs to be told that everything is alright, Robin...not sent away because of her mistakes, ones that she couldn't control." She tried to reason with him._

"_She's dangerous, Raven; I can't have someone dangerous on my team, or in my city." He told her, sighing._

"_Do you really believe Starfire is dangerous?" Raven asked._

"_Yes, she won't listen to reason and stay in the infirmary for the rest of her life – she'll break out again and end up killing more people." He said, turning away from her and leaving the room._

"_Somebody please speak to me!" Raven could hear faintly from the cell._

_She peeked up to see Starfire hunched over herself and a tear streaming down her face, her aura was so sorrowful that she was unable to even sit properly, and she fell to the floor on her face._

"_I'm sorry, Starfire." Raven sighed, a single tear leaking out of the corner of her eye as she watched Robin deploy the sub headed for Gotham, to be taken care of by Batman._

"_We're going to go with the pod, but then...then, we have to go." Beast Boy told Raven, putting an arm around her._

_She didn't fight him like she would have usually and just let him support her as she tried to control her emotions, and with that, her magic._

"_What happens when she tries to come back? She'll try, and you know she will – harder than anyone else would." Cyborg asked, knowing that Starfire wouldn't give up without a fight, especially when she didn't think she'd done anything wrong._

"_We tell her that we don't want her," Robin said, coming through the door after setting the sub to autopilot, "We sever all ties and warn her _never_ to come back to Jump City again, _never_ to contact us again, and _never_ to use her powers again." He ordered them with narrowed eyes, "She'll understand then."_

"_This is Starfire, Robin!" Beast Boy yelled, "You dick, she's full of rainbows and sunshine – not nuclear bombs!" He screeched, heading to punch the Boy Wonder._

_Cyborg caught the little green boy and held him back as he tried to turn into tens of different animals to get at Robin – but eventually he gave up._

"_I fucking hate you!" He snarled, "None of us will ever forgive you! You said you'd care for her! You said she'd be safe here on Earth – not betrayed!" He ranted, fighting venomously again. _

Even though Raven was there and could read every thought in Robin brain, every feeling in his heart – she never could tell what his feeling were like about sending Starfire away. He'd definitely sent her to Gotham so she could be dealt with by Batman, who would be able to...end her...in a heartbeat – because he couldn't do it himself, but that's what she'd figured out.

They weren't allowed to speak of her anymore, Robin would brood for days without speaking or eating whenever someone blamed him for her flying off the handle – going off the rails. The most common thing to blame on him was her need to prove herself to him.

Beast Boy would never forgive Robin for as long as he lived, and Cyborg wouldn't look him in the eye – or mask – for months...but where did that leave Raven? With the masses or with what was best – apparently – for the city and the team?

She always told herself that she missed her friend and that she believed her to be safe – but there was always a nagging feeling that the Tamaranean spirit within her, the same that was inside Blackfire – and had consumed her – was ready to pounce at any moment, if Batman hadn't killed her already.

Raven would often think about what Starfire was living like now, was she happy? Did she remember what had happened? Had Batman been kind and erased her memory for her? Did she use her powers in secret? Did Batman check up on her often? Was she even on Earth anymore? Did they do the right thing?_ Was she still alive?_

**It's all come out now...dun, dun, DUUUUUN! Robin, you **_**bitch**_**!**

"**Let's kick him!"**

**No, evil side of my subconscious.**

"**But I want to, **_**you**_** want to!"**

**Like that makes it acceptable, try and contain your urges.**

"**What? Like when you're around hot guys?"**

**Say one more word and we're NOT writing anymore FanFiction.**

"**But what else will you do with your time? You've destroyed your social life, AND your academic life it one." **

**I...erm...see your point...**

"**Exactly, now kick him!"**

**NO!**

"**Please rate and review, or I'll let the evil side of my subconscious write evil things in my FanFiction story, yeah, that's right, all the '666' and 'worship Satan' shit will be in there! AND WE WON'T KICK ROBIN!"**

**Ahem, I apologize, my subconscious came back again, but I'm fine now.**

"**MOTHERFU–"**

**Jade.**


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Four

"They're sending for the Titans, my work is done, you have a few days to train before you start to commit my crimes." Slade said, handing Kori a suit. "And you, my dear, are going to welcome them to the city." He grinned.

"Why me?" She asked, "Surely it would be better for you to show yourself – fear is your friend, remember that one?" She asked sarcastically, snatching the suit from him.

"I gave you a choice, Starfire," Slade said, grabbing her chin and pulling her close, she winced at the use of her previous name, but he wouldn't call her Kori, or even Koriand'r, "And you chose to be my apprentice, wreak havoc throughout the city, ruffle a few feathers and make sure the Titans arrive in Gotham to a little vixen, a hell-raiser that knows all their tricks..." He said, trailing off and waiting for her to take over what she'd agreed to – like he'd taught her to.

"And I am to follow your ever order until the contract is complete." She sighed, groaning when he pushed her face away roughly.

"Right, now get dressed." He ordered her, "I _hate_ seeing you with those clothes on." He snapped at her.

She looked down at her old Titans uniform that she'd managed to make big enough to fit for training – six years of hardly using your powers deems you pretty much useless – and nodded.

"That makes two of us." She agreed, pulling up the heavy suit she'd been given by Slade moments before.

It was a set of tight, hard-wearing leather pants, black in colour, and then a pair of boots that felt heavy but they bent well – probably for maximum damage and minimal restrictions.

The shirt was tight and cropped to expose her stomach, well, the lower part at least and then she had several different belts that had Slade's symbol on and different gadgets inside. One of the gadgets was a communicator that fit into her ear, she thought it would fall out but it took a lot of effort to get out once it was in, so she just left it there.

She changed into her new suit, clad in black apart from the emblem of Slade on her belt and the skin of her arms, head and stomach. Her boots were extremely comfortable and though they were heavy they stayed where they were and allowed maximum movement – they reminded her of ski boots with all the Velcro fasteners and clips.

Strangely enough, so did her pants – regardless of them being tight leather and a fuss to get on, they didn't fall down.

"Like they'd have anything else to show that's not already on show..." She muttered to herself as she looked down at her stomach.

These pants were very different to the skirt she used to wear, for one, it covered all her legs but felt _much_ more revealing. And secondly, they only just covered where her underwear ended, the 'V' that she always thought of as a little arrow that pointed to her nether regions, was fully on show.

The shirt did come lower than her old one did, coming to the top of her waist. The sleeves were capped and different attachments were all over her arms with gadgets and even a slight amount of jewellery.

"Not bad..." She complimented herself as she turned in the mirror to check out her impressive derrière that was hugged to perfectly by the pants. "Could use some work though..." She added, poking the left cheek where it jiggled ever so slightly.

"It's not meant to be a fashion statement, or make you look good, Starfire." She heard from behind her.

She whipped round to see Slade leaning on the side of the door.

"You know, knocking on your guest's door would be a good idea." She snarled at him.

"I assure you, I have known of your location for months – if I wanted to peek, then I would have done it sooner." He told her.

"Why put me in something so revealing if you don't enjoy the view?" She asked, pivoting so that he could get a good look at her.

He looked her up and down before chuckling, "I guess I subconsciously registered your womanly figure then...rather than just giving you the suit that fit your teenage body." He nodded, coming into her borrowed room fully. "I hope you understand that this _is_ a partnership, Starfire, and I hope that you can..._understand_...my situation."

"You mean to say; 'I treat you like shit because I have to, and you treating me like an acquaintance is turning me on. Stop it'?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I have the feeling you're being sarcastic." He retaliated. "Behave, and I won't have to treat you like _shit_." He warned her.

"I thought you didn't want me to behave..." She asked, genuinely confused as to his change in instructions.

"You must be obedient when it is required, you seem to have developed the attitude that I need...but now you must control it when we're around the Titans." He told her.

Kori turned to face him completely and raised her eyebrow, "So you want me to not speak when you're speaking and...?" She trailed off, not sure what she was supposed to do when it came to them figuring out who she was.

"You may do what you wish when you're alone." He told her, "But you're not allowed to use your powers, Starfire, I have supplied you with equipment, the same as Robin's."

Kori's fist tightened at the mention of that _traitor _and Slade noticed.

"Why can I not just use my flight and starbolts?" She asked through gritted teeth.

"You must keep your identity a secret from them as long as possible – how many Tamaranean's do you suppose there are on Earth?" He asked, throwing her a pack of hair bands. "Tie your hair up, it's a giveaway."

Kori had grown out her childish hair into a longer version with layers and a stylish box-fringe. She tied it into a high pony-tail that reached her mid-back, and a few pieces hung to her chin at the front along with her fringe, framing her face.

"Why? Why not just let them know of my fury?" She asked, "Why not use my identity to play games with them?" She grinned evilly.

"Robin obsesses, that I'm sure you know." He said, seeing her eyes tighten. "And how much do you think he's going to drive himself crazy to figure out who my new apprentice is? You don't want to give him a ticket out of insanity, my dear." Slade said, turning away from her, "I am going to teach you the way to fight with these items but you _must_ put the effort in, Starfire." He told her. "What do you know?" He asked.

"I know little of hand to hand combat, but learning it is not an obstacle." She told him, her old way of speaking coming through slightly when she relaxed – she had to try very hard to control it and sound normal.

"Are Tamaranean's fast learners then?" He asked, leading her into a large training room that was luxurious compared with the one the old Titan's tower had had.

"Yes, we have heightened intelligence – remembering footwork and such is a simple task." She explained, looking around at the weapons, "It is flexibility that sometimes hinders me." She told him.

"How so?" He asked as he flicked on all the lights.

"I am supposedly too flexible – due to my strength – to learn the Earth ways of fighting...according to Robin." She told him nonchalantly as she stared at the lights and obstacle course. "Tamaranean Martial Arts was created for our way of moving, you see..."

Slade nodded and set up the course as she went on to explain how she knew little about it, though he seemed patient with her and her lack of knowledge.

"Watch, and learn." He told her seriously, it wasn't banter as he set off into a sprint.

Leaping over the first wall with a summersault, he landed on top of a balancing beam and cart wheeled along it, converting the end into a backwards summersault as he landed on a higher wall. Sliding down the curved side of the wall he leapt high into the air and landed at the finishing point on top of a three inch, by three inch pole ten feet from the ground.

Kori couldn't say anything; she was shell-shocked that someone of his size could do something so elegant and quick. Even Robin would have had trouble and faltered on that course in training – or he would have the last time she seen him.

Thinking of Robin and his skills in hand to hand combat, as well as his use of a utility belt – made Kori think about how hopeless it was if she fought against him. He'd destroy her and then watch her fall off a building, her emotions would be too affected to fly and she'd just fall to her death when her panic was too high to shoot a grapple out and save herself.

"Starfire, go!" Slade yelled, repeating himself for the third time as she day-dreamed.

Snapping out of it, she ran at the first wall. She managed the summersault but landed funny on the wall and fell off.

"Again." Slade demanded, not helping her up as she crawled back to the starting line.

She set off again and cleared it, but the balancing beam she couldn't land on with a summersault and she fell off.

"Again." She heard from behind her.

The rest of the day continued much like this, Kori only managed to complete the course a few times before she realized that Slade had disappeared. She wished that she wasn't so hopeless. Her flexibility meant that she wanted to turn several flips and form tight circles with her body and the amount she had to concentrate on getting the angles right was meaning that she couldn't concentrate on landing properly.

Seeing that her mentor had gone she went back to the starting line – checked one more time that she was alone – and set off to complete the course as she would as a Tamaranean. Even at Titans tower she wasn't allowed to do anything that wasn't based in the air or using starbolts.

Running at the first wall, she leapt over it easily and landed in a forwards-roll, but she pulled out of the forwards-roll into a standing position immediately – then turning that into seven tight summersaults that had her hands and feet touching as she folded in half one way and half the other way. The slide down the wall was simple enough, and landing on the pole on her hand was far easier than her feet and she grinned to herself as she held herself with one had up in the air.

Giggling to herself, she lowered her body slowly so that it would be placed gently on the floor. She'd do this her way; she could complete the course in a way _like_ Slade's...unlike Robin had once told her.

_Robin had lied._

**I LIKE her, don't you like her? I think she'd awesome, so badass and shit.**

**Anyhoo, this is the last instalment of...normal and sane...if you can call it that. Please, don't be put off by the way it seems a little far fetched...because I know it is, but, like most Hollywood movies, you just have to throw sense to the wind and lust after the hunks...**

**Or the letters, in this case...I like the look of that 'B' back there ;)**

**Rate and review, I have nothing but your words left in my life, I told my mom I needed friends but then she told me my dad found a Mac...and I...I just cracked...DON'T LET ME DOWN!**

**Jade.**


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Five

"Dude, we're going Gotham City!" Beast Boy squealed at Cyborg.

"DON'T BE GETTING TOO EXCITED IN THE T-SHIP AGAIN, GRASS STAIN!" He yelled at his friend.

Robin rolled his eyes as he handed Titans East the keys to their equipment and the folder with all the codes on for the security systems.

"Speedy, here's everything you're going to need – but contact us the second you feel like it's too much." Robin told him, it was an order despite the way he made it sound like a suggestion.

"Robin, we're perfectly capable of looking after Jump." He chuckled, "Now go, _before_ Cy kills BB."

Robin looked back to see Raven holding Beast Boy in a bubble to protect him from Cyborg as he went on and on about how cool Batman was.

"Have you _seen_ the Batmobile? I bet he's got a Batjet, and a Battrain, and a Batglider and a Bat–"

"–HE'S NOT THAT _LAME,_ YOU BLOB OF SNOT!" Cyborg growled, getting ready to use his sonic blaster on Raven's shield around Beast Boy.

"Yeah...somehow I don't think it's going to get any better when we're in Gotham." Robin sighed, shooting a device from his belt that shut down Cyborg's weapon.

"YO! PUT ME BACK ON!" Cyborg demanded Robin.

"Dude, you just asked Robin to turn you on..." Beast Boy laughed, and Raven couldn't hide her snicker as Cyborg fumed.

Kori pushed herself harder as she crashed through more of the drones Slade was sending towards her.

"Ugh!" She grunted as her fist went straight through one and her foot through the other. "Huh! Mah! Ya!"

Several more came at her and she used little balls of explosives to disorientate them before she sliced through them with her Bo staff.

"This isn't good enough, Starfire, faster!" Slade's voice came from the sidelines.

Kori clenched her fists and took out three in one punch before leaping over a group of them and stabbing her Bo staff through one and catapulting his body into the bulk of drones. They kept coming, however, and she had to perch herself on the ceiling and use a range of weapons within her belt to control their attacks and keep them back.

Using shuriken's in the shape on an 'S' – for _Slade_ – she pinned them to the floor and pelted them with mini explosives that broke their circuits. This continued for several minutes until all of the drones were pieces on the floor and the lights on the roof were flickered off eerily.

Placing her hands on the bar either side of her knees, Kori let her legs slide down and let her body hang for a few seconds before she let go and landed on the floor silently – ready for whatever was next.

Suddenly, through the darkness, came a boot with steel toe-caps – it hit her in the face and she went flying backwards into the drywall behind her.

_Okay, so I wasn't ready..._

She picked herself up quickly and blocked several of Slade's hits – she could see that he was training her to the level that she'd be faced with when fighting the Titans. Eventually she managed to land a decent hit on his chest and he went hurting through the back wall.

Kori wasn't foolish though, she stayed back, waiting for him to get up and start again. And sure enough, he got up and ran through the hole he'd created – attacking her with smoke grenades that clouded her view. His mask allowed him to install little heat-sensing screens to heighten his ability in low visibility fights.

The Tamaranean was beaten about a bit; she could feel her skin bruise as it was battered. When she saw the chance, Kori evaded his strikes and fled to the ceiling like she had before. But having already used this in front of Slade, she was pulled down quickly and slammed into the floor roughly – leaving an impressive dent in the tiles.

In a last-minute attempt, Kori smashed a stun grenade on the floor – it created a bright light that was too much for Slade's equipment to cope with and he staggered backwards. Before he could recover, Kori had pinned him to the floor and was pushing her Bo staff into the side of his neck.

"Well done, Starfire." He complimented, pushing her off of him.

"I'm so _thrilled_ that you approve." She scowled, picking herself up and walking straight past him into the infirmary where some of the broken drones made themselves useful.

"I _don't_ approve." He told her, changing his broken mask in the dark. "You were sloppy, and slow, you just got lucky."

"Fuck you too." She snapped, letting the drone dab the blood off her arm and another dress the wounds on her stomach.

"I don't appreciate the way you're speaking to me, Starfire." He said to her lowly. The eye Kori could see narrowed menacingly.

She didn't say anything else as she was patched up, Slade didn't seem happy with her – despite her progress considering she was out of practice and hadn't fought, or trained, like this before – and she didn't understand why.

"How long will you take to heal?" Slade asked impatiently.

"I don't know." Kori answered, rubbing the bandage on her arm to assess how much it was bleeding. The blood showed through in a little crimson blob after only a few prods and she sighed, "We're talking days before I can take the bandages off." She informed him, punching the wall angrily.

Slade came up behind the panting Tamaranean and put his hand on her shoulder; she wanted to shake him off but thought better of it when he tightened his grip.

"It will take the Titans a few days before they arrive, and it would be too obvious to cause problems immediately, my pet." He told her in a whisper, "Recover fully before you resume your mission." He told her, turning to leave. As he walked, he called over his shoulder a final command, "Oh, but you're not excused from training – an hour on the punching bag, half an hour on the speed bag, and then you can rest, Starfire."

"Do you think Batman will let us use his stuff? Maybe I could borrow a utility belt...it'd be better than Robin's! Oh, yeah, I could borrow the suit of–"

"–Batgirl?" Cyborg interrupted Beast Boy's constant buzzing.

"Oh, _yeah_!" Beast Boy grinned, "It might fit me better than Batman's...whoa, I could be Beast Bat, or Bat Boy!" He said, getting even more excited.

"Well done, Cyborg. You've actually made him even more of a moron loaded with E-numbers." Raven glared, turning the page of her book with a raised eyebrow.

"Blame Robin, not me!" Cyborg yelled in defence, looking over at her from his dome on the T-Ship.

"Erm, sure. But why?" Raven asked, peeking over the top of her book at Robin's dome and then back to Cyborg's.

"Well...erm...he, erm..." He murmured, scrounging for an answer. "Encouraged Beast Boy to join the team all those years ago!" He finally came up with.

"I really thought he'd be a little more mature at nineteen though..." Robin chuckled.

"I AM MATURE!" Beast Boy screeched, coming out of his Batman-obsessed head momentarily.

"You worship the ground Batman walks on...sounds like the sort of thing everyone else whose nineteen does...oh, and it's not creepy at all." Raven said monotonously, her sarcastic tone evident.

"Well you dated a guy out of a book, what's more immature and creepy than that?"

Raven glared over to him but otherwise ignored his crack at her problem with Malchior. Cyborg was shocked but said nothing, and neither did Robin – it was a sore subject for her still, as was Terra for Beast Boy and Starfire for Robin. The only unscathed one was Cyborg, but he was currently pining after a certain Titans East lady.

"How far are we from Gotham, Cyborg?" Robin asked after an hour or so of flying.

He'd never thought that he'd miss his old home so much, and he was eager to see how it had changed since 'the _good_ old days' before the Teen Titans, and then just the Titans.

"I'm going to say about three hours of actual flight time, but we'll have to stop to fuel the ship and maintain it..." Cyborg said, getting his computer up on the screen and punching in some numbers, "So in correlation to time we'll need to be stopped and time moving versus the distance _travelled_ and distance _to_ _travel_...it's going to be about...we won't be there until about noon tomorrow."

"NOON?" Beast Boy yelled, making everyone else wince, "How am I supposed to sleep tonight knowing we're going to Gotham?" He sighed, rubbing his eyes that were too wide to be natural.

Raven slammed her head against the glass of her dome, "I'll put you to sleep." She snapped.

"The Titans will arrive in Gotham tomorrow at noon, Starfire." Slade said, handing her a black mask to cover her identity with.

Though it only covered her eyes, it blocked out all recognizable features and considering the way she'd changed in six years anyway – she no longer looked like Starfire, the Teen Titan, but like Starfire, Slade's apprentice.

"You will call me Koriand'r." She commanded, punching the speed bag hard enough for it to break off the chain.

"No, to me you are Starfire." Slade snapped.

"It doesn't matter what I am to you!" She snarled, kicking several pieces of equipment over in her rage and lighting her starbolts, "I HAVE A NAME I WILL RESPOND TO AND YOU ARE NOT TO BE ARGUING WITH ME!" She screeched, throwing several starbolts at him – all of them hit their target due to Slade's shock.

Kori didn't care that her speech had slipped; she just tried to calm her breathing and let her eyes revert back to normal. Eventually, she stopped seeing red and landed on the floor – looking at the rubble on top of Slade's body.

"Oh shit..." She sighed, though there was no worry in her voice – she was more put out that she'd have no one to help her get her revenge on the Titans.

"Excellent." She heard over the speakers.

Jumping back from Slade's clone-drone, Kori glared at the one-way glass she knew Slade was hiding behind.

"_That_ is the fury I will see on your missions, _Starfire_." He told her, tightening his tone on her name.

"Ugh!" Grunt. "Son of a bitch!" She growled, punching her fist into the head of the drone – causing it to explode. "KORIAND'R THOL BAK'NUFARG LOMATAR!" She screeched at him before storming off to her room.

"You are become a worthy apprentice, Koriand'r." Slade grinned to himself, a sinister chuckle erupting from him.

**Very short one there, but hey, you can't complain considering the size of all the others. I only have one keyboard...**

**Alright, there's a little glimpse into what happened, maybe you've figured it out completely – but then maybe not. I'm trying to make it like 'Seven Pounds' where you only find out what's happening throughout the whole story at the end. **

**Hopefully it'll work, and if it doesn't then you can just keep it to yourself. But if it's good, then rate and review!**

**Jade.**


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Six

Kori stared out the window, watching the sun rise high into the sky. She'd been dressed since three o'clock and wanted nothing more than to fly out and find the Titans' ship. But Slade had told her no, he'd convinced her that waiting a few days to heal her wounds would be a better idea – however, she had different plans.

"It is an hour from noon, my pet." Slade said.

She'd long since ceased jumping when she heard Slade's voice behind her in the darkness – she'd figured out that it was likely he was always there, what better things did he have to do around this _dump_? Continuing to stare at the clock placed beside the window – she answered him.

"And the second they're settled, I'm going to pay them a visit." She said with narrowed eyes.

"You're not." Slade told her, having expected what she was going to say when he arrived outside her doorway. "You're going to do as you're told and heal."

"I am healed enough." She snarled.

Turning her head only slightly towards him, she yanked the bandages off and showed him that they indeed had healed more than enough – Tamaranean's were a fast-healing race.

"They will come to you."

"_That_ I do not doubt." She nodded, facing the window again, "How long before they are settled, do you think?" She asked with her head tilted to the side – it was strange for him to not see her facial expressions, but she wouldn't face him; even if he demanded it.

"Meer hours."

"Fabulous." She grinned, turning to face him, "I need a new mask." She told him, holding up the one she'd destroyed by using her eyes to shoot starbolts at him the day before.

"I will arrange it, you will practice now." He said, taking it into his hand and inspecting the damage caused.

"No." She snapped.

"I wasn't asking, I will _not_ lose my apprentice to a stupid mistake." He snarled back throwing her broken mask back at her to prove a point.

"Robin, where's Batman? Where is Batgirl? Why aren't they greeting us? Do they hate us? AW MAN! Does _he_ hate me–?" Beast Boy asked, the questions pouring out of him like a waterfall – endless and repetitive.

"Beast Boy–"

"What if he never meets me?"

"BB–"

"I'll never get his autograph!"

"YO! GRASS STAIN!" Cyborg eventually screamed after Raven and Robin failed to shut him up.

"What? I am panicking here!" Beast Boy asked, tears filling his eyes.

"_So_ normal..." Raven rolled her eyes, walking into the large mansion after Robin. "So you lived here, as a kid?" She asked, making conversation but also fishing for information – but he was blocking his thoughts and emotions from her.

"Yes, Batman and Bruce Wayne went to University together – he funds the protector of Gotham." He explained, "So don't break a lot..." He pleaded.

"Tell that to Cyborg." Raven rolled her eyes, looking back at Cyborg's compulsion to touch everything on the way to the Batcave.

"Oh, _those_, yeah, he can break them." Robin said, waving off her aggravation, "It's not like art costs all that much."

"Yeah, it's just a few million here or there..." Raven said sarcastically.

"Exactly, nice to know someone else understands." Robin smiled, not being able to tell her sarcastic voice apart from her normal tone of voice.

_I'm so thrilled._

"And we're allowed to stay here, for real?" Beast Boy asked. Raven could practically see the stars in his eyes.

"Of course, where else would we sleep?" Robin asked, genuinely confused.

"A motel or something? I don't know, all I know is that _this_ is _awesome_!" He grinned.

"It has to be said, it _is_ pretty cool..." Raven smiled, taking in the gothic style of the building, she could almost smell the books and history to this place. "I know I'll never be bored."

"OH YEAH!" The three teens heard from behind them, as it turned out – Cyborg had discovered the gaming room.

"I had hoped you'd not find this..." Robin sighed, "Now we'll never get any work done..."

"We're in Batman's pad – how much work did you _think_ was going to get done? It's like Tokyo all over again! BEST VACATION EVER!" Beast Boy squealed, taking one controller to the games console and turning on the 'big-ass T.V'.

"Well...there's a library three doors down on the left if you're interested." Robin sighed, deflated.

"Dark poetry?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah," He nodded, "And horror novels."

"I'll see you when it's time to leave." Raven squeaked, darting off and slamming the door to the library.

All that could be heard from where Robin was standing now was the occasional 'Azarath Metrion Zinthos' and 'BOOYAH!'.

"_Looks like it's my job to get the _actual_ work done...again..."_ Robin muttered to himself angrily, skulking off to the evidence room and mainframe computer system to find out what he could about Slade's recent thefts and sightings around the city.

As it turned out, he hadn't been seen anywhere – just his mark on the drones – he'd just hacked into computers and files himself.

"What are you up to...?" Robin asked out loud, looking through what he'd stolen and looked at throughout the last few weeks. "Dynamite...nitro glycerine...computer chips...communication system...bank security systems..." He read off a list. "Sounds like you."

"What does?" Raven asked from behind him, standing in the doorway with a book that looked rather modern for her.

"Slade." Robin said, bringing up some files to show her, "He's stolen all this information and tech...but there's no trace of it being used anywhere." Robin sighed.

"Well, what's to say he's going to use it right away?" She asked, taking a seat next to him and bringing up some more items. "It's not like he used the neutron blaster right away when he stole it – and the chips, it took him a year to even think of a use for them..." She reminded him, "He's a psychopath; there isn't much he does for a reason."

"No, he's always got a goal...a _purpose_ to everything he does." Robin shook his head, "It's too soon to tell what he's doing – but I bet this is just the beginning."

Raven swivelled in her chair to face him, her heavy book on her lap as she questioned him, "And you're going to know what he's doing from a bigger list of items?" She asked.

"Yeah, I'm guessing that he already knows I'm looking at these files. He's good like that." Robin said, slight annoyance in his voice.

"Yeah, he _did_ evade us for six years – maybe he's been _waiting_ for something...?" Raven said, entertaining the idea of him having a motive despite her belief of him being a psychopath, Robin had always thought differently and she could _usually_ trust him...

"But what takes six years to achieve...but doesn't draw attention?" He asked. This is the way he didn't usually like to work but answering questions with questions seemed to be giving him more ideas about Slade's motives. "It's not like he's ill-equipped or lacking funds."

"You're asking the wrong girl, you were his apprentice for a short time – didn't he tell you anything?" She asked.

"It was for a few days, Raven." Robin clarified, "And no, he didn't trust me – and for good reason." Robin said, getting aggravated with himself.

"He had you sussed from the beginning; it's not your fault." Raven told him, putting her hand on his shoulder to soothe him. "We could always try again, if need be."

"It's too dangerous; if you hadn't come for me...I wouldn't have made it out alive." Robin said, rubbing his temple. "I can't put someone else in that position, but regardless, he'll expect me to do something like that."

"Perhaps, but you've already done it once – when do _you_ ever repeat yourself? And when is anyone ever suspicious of someone using the same idea _twice_?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

"It's too dangerous, Raven. Slade has grown bigger and stronger, not weaker, and we don't need to make annihilating us easier for him." Robin sighed, getting up out of the chair and walking off into the shadows to find a place to sleep – he'd not slept well the night before with all the stress and wanted to catch up with the rest of the Titans body clocks.

He had a lot to deal with now, and for one nineteen-year-old boy...it was becoming too much, too soon.

_I have to be strong, but I have no idea if I can do this job – even with my whole team...or close enough to all of them._

Just then, his communicator buzzed, telling him that someone was trying to contact him. He picked it up to see that it was an unknown number – suspicious, he picked it up.

"Hello?" Robin called to the person on the other end – he couldn't see who it was because it was just showing a dark screen. "Show yourself." He snapped after they didn't answer.

"Are you always this angry?" He heard from the other end.

Relaxing, Robin sighed and even smiled at the sound of his old friend's voice.

"Alfred." He smiled.

"Master Dick, I see you've arrived at Wayne Manor." He said, coming into the light.

The old butler had only aged slightly, and even then, he was still young-looking and ready as anything. Robin couldn't help but notice how lucky Batman was to have Alfred – he was always looking after him, and had saved his life too many times to count.

"Yes, thank you for readying it for us." Robin nodded.

"That's quite alright," Alfred nodded, "I'm sorry I could not be there to greet you, but Master Bruce had to leave quite suddenly, and you know how he can't look after himself..." Alfred chuckled.

"Still none too bright?" Robin joked.

"He could use some work..." Alfred said seriously, sighing, "He has missed you, despite what you might think, sir." Alfred said, stepping into dangerous territory.

"How is the hunt for the Joker and Harley Quinn doing?" Robin asked, changing the subject from his adoptive father/mentor.

"As well as you'd expect, Master Dick, it's...slow...and dangerous." He sighed, rubbing his forehead as though he had a headache.

"Don't put yourself out searching for him, Alfred, Bruce will understand if you need to rest." Robin told him. "And if he doesn't, _I'll_ tell him.

"That is most kind of you, Master Dick, but that is wholly unnecessary – I am as fit as they come at my age." He joked, "I am afraid that Master Bruce has summoned me, this was only meant to be a greeting and a casual 'hello'." He snickered, "Please forgive my abrupt departure."

"It's a shame it's so short, Alfred." Robin sighed, "I hope to see you before we return to Jump." He said, shutting the communicator on a nodding Alfred.

"Most formal, Master Dick." Beast Boy jibed in a posh accent, coming from behind the corner and putting his arm around Robin's shoulders, "Seriously, you should stop using those oh-eight-hundred number sex lines, 'Lord Pussy-fucker' they cost an arm and a leg." He chuckled.

**Heavy shit man, heavy shit. Why make batman leave Gotham? Why make it so that the Titans have to look after Gotham all by themselves? **

**Because I don't know how to portray Batman, as you've probably noticed, I've not uploaded for the same reason – another story of mine has been destroyed because it calls for the great BATMAN (na na na na na na na, na na na na na na na, na na na na na na, na na na na na na, na na na na na na, BATMAN, BATMAN, BATMAN!)**

**Ahem, sorry, that's a compulsive disorder I have...**

**Please, send me help to try and clear my disorder, rating and reviewing just once a chapter can save this poor teenager from deeper depths of insanity for a whole day.**

**Jade.**


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Seven

The clock chimed two o'clock, instantly Kori was in motion.

"Where's the mask?" Starfire called out in a level voice as she stripped off.

Slade walked in – completely ignoring her door being closed and stood in the doorway. Kori looked up and narrowed her eyes at him, slipping out of her tight trousers and facing him in her slightly tattered underwear.

"I need new panties." She told him, showing him how damaged they were from being washed every night – she only had one pair, "And a bra wouldn't go amiss either." She added, picking up the strap that was falling apart.

"Take what you want." He told her, handing her the mask. "You're allowed out – but stay in Gotham – as long as you gather these items for me." Slade said, handing her a list of component numbers and names of the buildings they were held in. "Be sloppy about it."

"You mean, 'get caught'?" She asked, slipping a clean pair of her uniform pants on and the shirt.

"Go to town on it, be theatrical." Slade nodded, leaving her room. "Just keep your communicator in." He ordered from down the hall.

"Wow, freewill going on there..." She scoffed, grabbing the communicator and putting it in her ear.

Finding her boots, she strapped them on and hunted out her belt. Once she was dressed, she tied back her hair into a high pony-tail and put her mask on.

"Not bad." She commented when she checked out her rock-hard butt and re-defined curves. "Good job you found me, I was getting a little porky." She said to Slade through the communicator.

"You hardly fit in that suit on the first day." He agreed.

"Fuck you." She chuckled, "You know you wanted to bone me...and still do." She joked crudely.

"I'm sure Robin would love to hear that..."

"I'm sure Robin would love to have that." She said, looking at her own profile in the mirror.

Making sure her belt fit properly and was filled with everything she'd need, she made her way to the window slowly. When she was ready, she leapt out of the window and used the rooftops to reach the main city where the first item she needed was being held.

Standing outside, she looked up at the large establishment with the big neon sign that had caught her eye originally.

_Nice._

"Ah, Victoria Secret." She grinned, taking her first few steps in and looking around at the people staring at her.

Not ready for all the attention, she stepped in a bit further where everyone took in her mask and general clothing and vacated the shop or moved backwards to avoid her.

"EVERYBODY DOWN!" She screeched suddenly, pulling out several little explosives and pelting them off the floor to show the merchants and the occupants that she was serious.

They all screamed and hit the deck, hiding from the strange criminal that was heading for the underwear racks.

Chuckling, Kori waltzed over to the back of the shop and picked up a few items that caught her eye and a couple of different sets of underwear.

"I like the pink...oh, and the black..." She said to no one in particular, twirling around. "So, which one should I get?" She asked one of the random people inside the stock room trying to call out for help.

"Erm–erm–we–it–" They stuttered together, dropping the phone.

Not being able to talk, one pointed at the black and another at the pink. Kori rolled her eyes and took a step back to hold them up against her – show them what they'd look like.

"I think the pink makes my skin look a funny colour..." She sighed, looking at it and then the girl who had picked it.

"BLACK!" She suddenly screamed, cringing and hiding behind the other frightened girl.

"Thanks for the advice." Kori winked, walking with a purpose over to the front desk like she'd been for a casual shop. "Can I have these packaged?" She asked the merchant quivering on the ground and pressing the panic button with a bat symbol on it.

She giggled and put her hand over the button, blocking his ability to press it. "Oh, didn't you hear? He's out of town." She winked at him as he scrambled up and grabbed a box up.

"I-Is it a g-g-gift?" He asked, his knees shaking.

"Yeah, for me, but don't say anything." She giggled sweetly.

The merchant thought about what a nice laugh she had, and how that despite her fierce way of attracting attention – she hadn't hurt anyone, nor did it look like she was planning it – she looked like she could have been a nice girl at one time.

_What a shame..._

"The Titans are here! They'll stop people like _you_!" Someone called from the back as she was being handed her items all wrapped with bows and such.

"People like _me_...don't fear the Titans." She whispered, getting right in the man's face and running her finger down his chest seductively. "What's little Robin Red Breast going to do about a few sets of underwear?" She chuckled, hooking her finger inside the top of his pants. "Other than ask me to model them for him?" She asked with a grin and a wink. "Nothing, they've got bigger fish to fry." She called over her shoulder, walking with a little bounce in her step out of the store.

She somewhat skipped down the street until she came to an alleyway, at which point she used her grapple to pull herself up onto the rooftops – completely gone from the scene of the crime.

"Good, Starfire." Slade praised her, "And you got some supplies too – are you sure you were a hero at one time? It is as though you were born to be evil." He asked, Kori could hear a smile in his voice.

"I just can't see why I didn't think of this before." She told him before taking her finger off the communication button and settling in to watch the Titans arrive at the scene of the crime.

She couldn't help but have a deep current of thrill run through her; it was a pounding of adrenaline that had hit her _after_ she'd managed to keep her cool in the store. Though it was a small crime, she knew that there were bigger and better things to come and she needed to have that little practice.

Knowing that the Titans would show up at the scene – leaving the computer screens unmanned at Batman's lair, she gathered everything she had stolen up and stashed it in a heating vent on the roof she was on, ready to collect it later.

"You never learn." She chuckled, referring to how many villains had outsmarted them before – they always use all of their resources and leave no one to see where the next attack was.

_At least Batman has the right idea._ She thought to herself angrily.

Coming back into the present and realising that the Titans were only minutes away, Kori pulled herself together and set off in the direction of H.E.X Labs – the location of her first errand.

"Hey Robin, check this out." Cyborg called, turning the screen towards the approaching Titans.

They saw a girl clad in strange clothing waltzing into Victoria Secret like she was from the army or something.

"Hottest chick you've ever seen? Suspicious and strange clothes though..." He asked with a grin.

"Very, but check out that one!" Beast Boy yelped with laughter. He was pointing at a man dressed as a woman looking at underwear with his very embarrassed daughter. "Ah, the lengths some single parents will go to in order to ruin their children's lives..." He sighed with a shake of his head.

"If you're people-watching then I'm not coming anywhere near that screen." Robin snapped from the sofa.

"I understood your point when we were checking out Kitchen Deluxe...but _this_ is Victoria Secret, what's wrong with checking out who buys what in there?" Beast Boy asked with a genuinely confused face.

"It has to be said, Robin, people buy things you would never believe..." Raven called over the top of her book, having looked at the CCTV before in Jump City for the poetry store.

"Check out Sarah Connor, she's looking shifty." Cyborg said, pointing at the girl he'd complimented before.

"_Judgement Day_ or _The Sarah Connor Chronicles_?" Beast Boy asked, not sure whether he was complimenting the girl or insulting her.

"The Sarah Connor Chronicles." Cyborg answered with a wiggling eyebrow.

_Compliment._

The both of them jumped back from the screen when she threw mini-explosives at the occupants of the underwear store and ordered them to get on the floor.

"Why Victoria Secret?" Raven asked, seeing the alarm being pressed by the cashier as the criminal picked up a few things.

"Looks like even thieves like to feel nice _under_ their clothes..." Beast Boy said, quoting the advertisement and rubbing his chest in circles.

"You have a meter on the T.V." Robin stated quickly before turning the sound up so they could see what she was saying to the people in the store.

"_I like the pink...and the black...which one should I get?" She asked one of the random people inside the stock room trying to call out for help._

"What? You can't ask advice while stealing!" Beast Boy yelled, scratching his head.

"SHH!" Everyone hissed at him.

"_Oh, didn't you hear? He's out of town." She winked at him as he scrambled up and grabbed a box up._

"This girl is either really smart, or really stupid." Raven said, trying to find the co-ordinates of the store before Robin exploded with anticipation. He hated feeling useless.

"Maybe she doesn't know we're here." Cyborg said, but he was cut off with someone informing her that she was going to be stopped by them.

"_People like me...don't fear the Titans." She whispered._

"She's really stupid." All the Titans said together, Raven finally finding the co-ordinates and telling Robin where to go.

Kori placed her hand on the glass in front of her, feeling how thick it was before she hit too hard or not enough. Feeling like she got it right, she thrust her fist forwards but it bounced off.

"Tougher than you look..." She commented, looking at how wafer-thin it was.

Pulling her body backwards, she lifted her hands up in a primal way and slammed them both into the glass – managing to shatter it with a decent enough strike.

The alarm went off immediately and she got a little voice in her ear telling her what to do.

"Don't panic, just make sure you do it right – if the Titans show up just _try_ and stay faceless." He told her.

"Got it." She said, keeping her eyes on the prize.

She wasn't in a place to argue with him at the moment, as much as she wanted to tell the Titans exactly who she was and make them pay – she'd never done such a big job before and needed guidance. She'd do exactly as she was told until she got the hang of it.

_There are three things on the list, so I'll be good enough at it by the end of the night._

Taking the initiative, Kori took the route through the building that wouldn't take her directly to the item encased within – they'd either be swimming with guards or the Titans will have already arrived and anticipated a small-time thief to do something like that.

"There!" One yelled, pointing at her as she ran past his line of sight.

Kori turned immediately to see him coming towards her with three other guards.

"Take them out." Slade told her.

She nodded slightly and waited for them to be in the perfect position for her to freeze them with one of her little balls of chemicals. Releasing a handful of them, they exploded and trapped the guards in a prison of ice around their bodies and leaving only their heads to breathe.

"Get the weapon." Slade commanded.

Not casting another glance back to the guard's cries, she ran towards her goal and froze anyone who tried to get in her way. Crashing into the chamber and seeing the security systems around it, she turned white and froze.

"Gone?" Robin growled, pacing back and forth. "A small-time criminal disappeared into the night never to be seen by _anyone_?" He yelled at himself.

"It's a big city, Robin." Raven told him, her eyes lighting up as she searched for the girl.

Despite having never met her, she felt that she could get some kind of lock on her from her presence once being in the store.

"How far can someone get in eight and a half minutes?" Robin asked the clerk as he looked at his watch.

"On foot, a few miles or there about." He said, not exactly sure on the numbers.

"Cyborg, can you pick up anything?" Robin asked, looking back at his friend scanning the walls for fingerprints.

"Nah, whoever it was hasn't been anywhere near my system before." He lied, snapping the system shut and walking over to his friend, "I think my circuits are broken though, I'm on the fritz."

"Can you fight?" Robin asked.

"Yeah, but my maps won't be any good, nor my data banks." He sighed, "Sorry, Robin."

Robin nodded. "Beast Boy, can you pick anything up?" He called over, his friend a giant sniffer-dog searching for scents.

"There are too many." He answered, rubbing his head once he'd changed back, "Scent headache." He groaned, going more green than _natural,_ for him.

"Maybe if we–"

_Ring. Ring. Ring._

Ring. Ring. Ring.

_Ring. Ring. Ring._

Ring. Ring. Ring.

_Ring. Ring. Ring._

"Do you want to answer that?" Robin asked the clerk – who was still staring at them.

"Not really." He answered in his squeaky, typical-teenage boy voice. As he picked up the phone, the Titans went back to their conversation.

"We'll have to go back to Batman's and restart our search from th–"

"–Sorry, erm..." The merchant interrupted, holding the phone out to Robin, "It's for you." He said, pulling at the neck of the shirt that was now too tight under the Boy Wonder's death-glares.

Robin took the phone and placed it by his ear, waiting for someone to speak. Apparently they wanted him to speak first, and so he did.

"Who is this?" He asked.

"She's at H.E.X Laboratories." He heard the voice say quickly before it disconnected.

Robin tried to redial but it said that the number didn't exist. Not sure what to make of the information, he turned to his team and sighed.

"Apparently I know where she is – but I don't know if it's a trap or not." He admitted, rubbing his hand through his hair, "Would someone lie about that?" He asked.

"Well, this is a different kind of city..." Raven told him, "How did they know about the girl?" She asked him.

"I don't know, all he said was her '_location'_." Robin said, looking out the door at the empty street.

"There's only one way to find out whether Sarah Connor's there." Beast Boy said, putting his hand on Robin's shoulder to encourage him, "The worst that's going to happen is that Slade's there – and that's what we came here for." He told him with a grin.

"It's all win, win for BB." Cyborg nodded with a roll of his eyes.

Raven nodded as well, "They have a point, for once."

Cyborg and Beast Boy glared at her but otherwise said nothing as they _were_ trying to convince Robin to drive off into the sunset after a line of information off of someone they didn't know they could trust.

But it was all they had to go on, and they did have a point.

"Take the next left and you'll come into contact with a group of guards, take them all out and you'll be able to see the neutron blaster." Slade told Kori.

"Okay." She nodded, lowering herself from the ceiling and setting off down the hall towards where Slade said the guards were.

He was right, though he hadn't been truthful with her; there were over thirty guards in front of her – all armed with blasters.

"Take. Them. Out." Slade commanded when she faltered.

"There's too many." She panicked, taking a step back.

"No, there isn't." He snarled, "Get me that blaster."

Starfire stood there, staring at the guards of all sizes holding their guns and pointing them at her.

"Give yourself up, and come quietly." They called out to her.

"STARFIRE!" Slade yelled in her ear when he saw she hadn't attacked.

On his command, she shifted into attack and took out the first three rows of men easily. Injected with confidence from her easy little battle she went on to dodge the bullets from the blasters and kick the guards out of the way.

"She's fast – someone seal the doors!" One yelled just before Kori threw him into the wall and knocked him unconscious.

When the room was empty of men – and considering the twenty more men that had come while she was fighting, probably the whole room – Kori made her way quickly towards the floating blaster in the middle of the room.

"Smash up the security system, it'll give you a little shock but you should be fine." Slade told her.

Clenching her fist, Kori pulled her arm back ready to crush the components in one strike when she heard voices from behind her.

"Someone's here alright..." She heard a distinct voice say.

Gritting her teeth and channelling her anger, Kori drove her fist through the machine and though she felt the shock, she didn't yell out of scream like she would have usually – she was too angry. When the power left, the blaster fell to the floor with a loud clump.

"What was that?" She heard from the hall behind her.

Grabbing the blaster quickly, she shot a grapple cable up to the roof of the building and pulled herself up. She was perched on the ceiling twenty metres above the Titans when they walked in cautiously.

Robin was at the front and Kori had to fight herself hard to resist pummelling the shit out of him right then and there.

"It's gone!" He gasped, pointing at the destroyed security system.

"I can't see any weapons used to open it up, though..." Raven said, walking around it.

Looking at her old friends, Kori gasped lightly at the changes in them.

Raven's body was slimmer and had much more defined curves – not that she was lacking them when they were younger – and her magenta purple hair flowed past her shoulders now and had more of a style cut into it. Her cape seemed more luxurious now, made out of sterner material by the look of it. Her suit was no longer a leotard; it was a dress with wide slits up the sides to expose her pale thighs. A pair of knee-high boots with a slight heel completed her outfit.

_Look who got hot._

Beast Boy's face had grown older though his outfit hadn't changed at all. It seemed he'd filled out in..._certain_ _area's_...but then, that might have had something to do with Raven bending over in front of him looking for clues. He'd grown his hair longer into a tousled style that even Kori wanted to run her fingers through in the throes of passion.

_But then, the same could be said for Shaun at work._

Obviously, Cyborg hadn't changed at all because he was already fully grown – due to his accident – when she'd first met him; though he did seem less childish for the moment.

And finally, Robin – or more commonly known now as Nightwing to the outside world – he'd changed into a menacing black and blue ensemble that probably made panties drop all over Jump City. He'd grown out his hair so it grazed his shoulders and his mask now covered even more of his face.

_He's grown up well...bastard._

"What is Sarah Connor going to do with that blaster, Robin? How'd she even get in here?" Beast Boy asked after phasing back into a human from bloodhound.

_What's this, they still call you Robin? Who's Sarah Connor?_

"I don't know, but I don't think it's for stealing anymore underwear."

Kori couldn't help but giggle, the Titans heard but when they looked up to the ceiling there was nothing there and no evidence of a break-in, or out.

On the outside of the building, Kori was panting and trying to control her fury. She avoided looking back at the building as she headed towards her next destination.

"Well done, Starfire."

_Ring. Ring. Ring._

Ring. Ring. Ring.

_Ring. Ring. Ring._

Ring. Ring. Ring.

"Robin, maybe you should pick up the phone..." Raven said, pointing to the payphone that wouldn't stop ringing.

He shook his head, "It could be that tip-off again."

"Who told us where Sarah Connor was." Beast Boy said, already naming her as they didn't know her name.

In the end, Robin gave in and answered the phone, "Hello?" He said.

"You've wasted time. She's at Wayne Enterprises." The voice said before it disconnected.

Robin glared at the phone and slammed it into the holder.

"Where is she?" Cyborg asked, already starting the T-Car.

"Wayne Enterprises." He answered, getting into the car.

"How are they finding me so quickly?" Kori asked herself as she heard the sound of the T-Car's engine behind her as she entered the front door of Wayne Enterprises.

"It doesn't matter, get what you came for." Slade answered her, "There are more guard here but the prizes are much more worth the trouble."

"You could create this blaster in hours – why get me to steal it?" Kori asked as she crept through the halls and tied up the occasional guard.

"The more things you steal that other people can create, the less likely they are to guess you're working for me." He said, "So you'll be staying back at your old home and you'll carry on your life as normal – in the light hours." He told her.

"And sleeping?" She asked with a glare, knocking out three guards with a gas-pod.

"If you don't want you revenge, then by all means – sleep all day." He sighed falsely.

Kori glared but otherwise didn't answer Slade as she rushed into the labs at Wayne Enterprises and looked around as quickly as she could for whatever she was looking for.

"What the hell does a fusion-drive look like!" She whispered furiously into the communicator, but she got no answer. "Thanks, Slade." She hissed.

Kicking down doors and looking around for something that looked slightly familiar or fusion-y, Kori was drawing a lot of attention to herself as a few more guards rushed in to try and stop her.

She defeated them all easily and locked them in a chamber to make sure they stayed away from her frantic searching – running into the Titans now would prove disastrous when she had to return to Slade the following night and present him nothing.

"You look a little lost." She heard from behind her.

Turning slowly, she saw the Titans facing her. _FUCK._

"Hello." She smiled sweetly, "Who are you?" She asked.

"We're the Titans, Sarah." Beast Boy called out, phasing into a bear – ready to attack if she made a move.

"Aw, isn't that nice?" She smiled, sounding genuinely kind as she leant down and pressed her arms together to show off her cleavage. "It's a shame I must be going now..." She sighed with a sad face, "Rain check?" She winked, smashing a little vile of chemicals into the floor that welled up into a dark cloud.

It gave her enough cover to grab the fusion-drive she'd spotted while speaking, and fire a grapple cable up into the ceiling and escape through the hole.

Seeing where she'd escaped, the Titans followed her onto the roof but didn't see another glimpse of her once they were up there – not in any direction.

"Ugh!" Robin groaned, kicking the side of the building, "We lost her, again!" He spat.

Raven sighed and put her hood up, "Well moaning about it won't help us track her." She said, turning to Cyborg and Beast Boy, "You, come with me and we'll gather evidence, Cyborg can check the ground and the alleys – Robin, you can check the rooftops and other labs." She ordered, grabbing Beast Boy and levitating them down to the lab.

"Hold on a min–" Cyborg cut off Robin.

"Dude, you saw her face." He said with wide eyes.

Robin nodded and swallowed roughly; when Raven meant something she'd always have the same look about her. And everyone had learned – in a very bad way – not to defy her when she'd taken control.

"It's most likely she'll hit somewhere else tonight – she's got hours till sunrise and that fusion-drive won't last long without a core-reactor."

"Where can I find one of those?" He asked.

Cyborg opened up the computer in his arm and clicked a few buttons, eventually he managed to pin-point the exact spot she'd be likely to hit.

"Unless she leaves Gotham, she has to get it from here – CA Returns."

"It sounds like a retailer." Robin said, putting the coordinates into his communicator and setting it as his target.

"It is, it's a shipping dock that dealers make a living off of..." Cyborg relayed off of the reports stored on the system, "Someone ordered it, but never collected – they're sending it back sometime next week." He told Robin.

"She hasn't got a vehicle by the looks of it, so I'll wait there for her." Robin said.

"Need help?" Cyborg asked.

"She's a little girl with shiny toys, I'll handle it." Robin chuckled.

"Some little girls you know..." Cyborg laughed, thinking of how seductive she was as she patronized them.

"Robin is waiting to ambush you." Kori heard through her communicator.

"Where?" She asked, not sure where she was going for him to ambush her.

"CA Returns; it's the only place there's a core-reactor – and the fusion-drive will become useless in a few hours without it."

She sighed, "Let me guess, you want me to go and get it, drop it off and _then_ go home?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

She altered her course to the dock and made sure to stick to the alleyways.

"They're not for me, Starfire." He answered before she heard the line disconnect.

_Looks like I'm truly on my own now. Can I handle Robin on my own?_

It took half an hour to get to the dock, despite the speed she had over normal walkers and the closeness of it to her recent location – it seemed Gotham was a much bigger place when you're on foot.

But eventually, she arrived at the dock and made her way inside. She wasn't sure if Robin had a car or not, so she thought she'd beat him when she made it all the way through the empty dock to the building where the core-reactor was being held.

"Didn't your mother teach you any manners?" She heard from behind her as she reached out for the handle.

"That's cheating, I didn't use a car." Kori grinned, turning to face Robin – or Nightwing, depending on whether she felt like spooking him or not.

"Stealing isn't all that moral either." He raised an eyebrow at her.

She giggled, "Oh, I'm not all that bad – once you get to know me." She told him with a wink.

"You've only stolen minimal things, and you haven't hurt anyone – you can still change." He told her, straightening up and facing her properly.

She straightened up as well, and looked into his eyes until she felt she needed to speak.

"So you're one for forgiveness now, then?" She asked with a slight scoff, taking her mask off and looking at him briefly. "Who knew a leopard could change his spots." She muttered.

"I'm just protecting Gotham, and its people." He said, reaching his hand out for the mask she'd taken off. "You included."

She snapped her head up and glared at him, throwing her mask into the water and taking a quick step forwards.

"Protecting? So you're _protecting_ me, now?" She snarled, getting up in his face. "You're actually trying to do what's _best_ for me?"

"You've done small things wrong, let people like the Joker, Harley Quinn, and Slade do the evil. Fight against them." He told her. "A month or two community service will clear your name..." He told her.

She clenched her fist and pursed her lips to stop the barrage of swears trying to break through her lips.

"Batman could even help you to train for good..." He offered her.

Hearing his name made her flinch and he saw it, not sure why she'd react to his name, he tried again.

"You're not bad; you left every guard alive–"

"BECAUSE THEY HAVE NOT BETRAYED ME!" She snarled, attacking Robin.

They rolled around on the floor until she was pinned to the floor and he had a shuriken at her throat, ready to slice her jugular.

"I'm giving you one last chance, stand down!" He yelled at her.

"FUCK YOU!" She screeched, pushing him off her regardless of the shuriken slicing into her neck.

It was a few more minutes before Kori was on top, literally sitting on him as she glared deep into his eyes.

"YOU–" She cut herself off when she felt blood in her throat.

Feeling herself fading, she fell to the side of Robin and clutched her neck to try and patch herself up. Robin was shocked and sat up, seeing the sudden torrent of blood dripping from her neck and her mouth.

"No..." He whispered, seeing her body arch and her eyes clench in pain.

He reached out to help her but she jumped out of the way, "No, don't...touch me..." She commanded, her body going limp and weak as more blood spilled from her.

"Let me help you, I can't let you die!" Robin said, pulling her arms from her neck as he inspected the wound.

It was as he feared; the gash was deep and wide from where she'd fought. _Why did I dare to use it?_ He berated himself. She was only a small-time criminal that could turn herself around but if he could help her soon, then she'd die.

"I've had...worse." She told him truthfully, her chest heaving.

"I doubt it, this could kill you." He told her, making a tourniquet out of some material on his suit.

"I was...already dead." She told him, letting him secure the material before she kicked him off and threw a device that held him to the ground.

Robin was shocked at her reflexes, even someone without that level of damage would have trouble doing something like that – but she did it regardless. He watched – struggling – as she ran away from him, a trail of blood left in her wake.

**Alright, so I was feeling generous after cheating you before...am I going to be rewarded with a lovely rate and review shower? Only you will tell me!**

**I don't really think there's much to tell you at this moment in time about the story, other than the fact that some rather disturbing chapters are coming up, and please, don't think it's moving too fast, I literally cannot stretch it out any longer.**

**Jade.**


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Eight

Kori crashed through the doorway to her home, crawling across the surprisingly clear hallway and entering the kitchen. On the top shelf was a first aid kit that she'd kept from her time with the Teen Titans.

It had everything she'd need to patch herself up, injections, antiseptics and the like. The only fault in her plan was that she couldn't actually reach the kit.

"Fuck." She muttered.

She decided to go for it anyway, regardless of her weakened state and placed her hand on the kitchen worktops above her – not letting go of her neck or the tourniquet – and pulled herself up. But it seemed she'd sustained another wound in her arm and it split open further with such use of her muscles.

"AH!" She screamed, falling back onto the floor and panting heavily. She put her finger to her ear and clicked the little button on the communicator, "Slade...Slade, help...me." She begged, pulling herself into a sitting position where her back was resting on the kitchen cupboards.

She got no answer, and as she panicked more blood spilled from her.

"Slade!" She yelled, her breathing ragged as she coughed up some more blood.

Again, she got no answer. Her body was slowing and she could feel herself getting heavy and limp the longer she stayed on the floor.

Robin stumbled into the Batcave where all of his friends were working; trying to figure out the girl they'd not been able to fight, or even corner.

"Robin, did you get her?" Cyborg asked over his shoulder.

"Erm..." Robin said, looking down at the blood on his hands.

"Robin?" Raven asked, turning around and seeing the blood. "Robin!" She called out, rushing over to him, "What did she do? I can heal–" He cut her off.

"I-I did it..." He murmured.

His voice was low and strained because of his swollen throat. He couldn't believe that he'd probably killed the girl, her body could only lose so much blood before she passed out, and then minutes before she bled to death.

"What? What did you do?" Beast Boy asked, helping him into a chair as Cyborg got some water.

"I threatened her, put a shuriken to her throat...I didn't think...she moved..." He trailed off and looked up to his friends, "I think I've killed her." He told them quietly, finally looking up into Raven's eyes. "I think I've killed her, and if I haven't then she's got one foot in his doorway..."

Kori sat on the floor, her chest heavy as she felt her body weakening further.

_You can't give up! You're Koriand'r, Princess of Tamaran!_

"Shamed...Princess..." She sighed to herself, closing her eyes slightly.

_Don't spin that shit; you're owed revenge for what they did to you!_

"They...didn't have a...choice." She argued, trying to make peace with herself before she died. Why die with unfinished business? She'd earned a rest.

_You mean in the way you don't have a chance now? You can still get up and fight, it's just harder than sitting here and letting yourself die! Don't be lazy!_

"I did not...choose this..." She snapped.

_Yes you are! You're choosing to die now, there's still a chance! Be better than them!_

It seemed that the war between her mind and her body was endless, and she knew that they could both match each other. So which one was she supposed to listen to? Which one was she supposed to be?

The way she saw it, she had two choices; stay on the floor, and die, her death only ever being discovered by Slade and possibly Batman – or she could get up, get her revenge but suffer immeasurable amounts of physical pain.

_Be better than the Titans..._

Eventually, she listened to her mind and got up – tearing her skin further – and dragging her limp body up so that she was leaning on the side of the kitchen worktops. Blood was smeared everywhere as she pushed herself and strained to reach the first aid kit. It took a long time to finally touch the box, and when she did, it fell onto the worktop and clattered to the floor.

"There's nothing on the news about anyone finding a body..." Cyborg said, looking through all the channels and all of the summoning calls for Batman. "_Do people honestly call Batman because their pot-plants have been stolen?"_ He asked himself quietly.

"It can take days to find a body, Cy." Robin said, his catatonic and shell-shocked demeanor was supposedly under control as he went about normally. "Follow the trail of blood again." He ordered.

"Robin, it gets to that alley and then there's nothing left." He told him, "Raven and Beast Boy checked it out and there's no body."

"Maybe someone took her body..." Robin suggested.

"For what?" Cyborg asked, his face twisted in confusion.

"Necrophilia." Beast Boy called out.

"What?" Robin asked, not sure what that was.

"Oh, it's where people have sex with–" Raven slapped her hand over his mouth and tried to take the information back.

"–Other people...while burying a dead body...really respectfully..." She lied pathetically.

"Right..." Robin said, dragging the word out in disbelief.

"Look, Robin, we can't find her – she might not be dead." Cyborg said, "She could be in the hospital." He suggested.

"Raven, call the hospital and give in her description – I want either her, or her body, _found_." Robin ordered.

"Forgive me, Robin." Raven said, not moving, "Why are you adamant on finding this criminal? You've done this before to Control Freak and not cared."

"Control Freak has his technology to help him, she was alone, just a small-time criminal that got too big for her boots...she can't take care of an injury like that." He told her, rubbing his chin, "I've never killed anyone, and if the first person I've killed is close enough to the most innocent criminal to date, well...how does that make me any different to Slade, or the Joker?"

"One...little...needle..." Kori muttered to herself as she bit the top off of the needle and looked at the sterilized end that was supposed to go in her arm.

_Oh shit, can you put these in your leg?_ She asked herself, panicking when she could see that injecting her arm was nearly impossible in her current condition. _I can't reach my arm and then hold it still while I'm breathing like this..._

She decided to bite the bullet and jab it into her leg quickly, it was a limb and not all too different to her arms...not really, what difference would it make? So she figured it would be okay. When she'd pushed all of the liquid in, she took the needle out and applied a little ball of cotton wool onto it to soak up the blood.

"X'hal, I hate needles..." She huffed, feeling her heart pump like a jackhammer.

When her leg had stopped bleeding, she picked up another needle that was empty and bit the top off of it. Knowing that this test would be worse than the first, she angled to needle just right in the crease of her elbow and drove it in slowly.

"Fuck me." She muttered, feeling it pierce the vein and pause.

She pulled the plunger back and watched her blood fill the barrel. When she'd extracted enough, she pulled the needle out of her skin and replaced it with an intravenous drip to get some liquids into her body.

Testing her blood in the little machine, she found that her blood had spread itself thinly throughout her body and she was in danger of both dehydration and blood loss. She groaned when she had to open up another vein on the back of her hand to funnel in some blood.

"Ouch." She hissed, feeling the sharp pinch when the blood stretched her vein a little too much.

Her neck was healing well ever since she'd wiped it down with the antiseptic and used the little rod that Cyborg had invented that sealed wounds almost instantly – it just hurt a lot.

"You don't say." She muttered, running the little rod along her arm and feeling the tight pulling and twisting of her skin cells reattaching themselves from her shoulder to her elbow on her left arm.

_At least they won't scar..._

When she'd patched herself up enough to attempt to move, she gathered herself up along with a few needles and braced herself for the mad dash to the sofa. Her legs were weak and trembled as she took her first step, the dizziness didn't help her coordination as she fell into several boxes.

Eventually she made her way to the sofa and sat down, resting the leg she'd injected on the coffee table and wrapping up her arm to stop the slight bleeding.

"You're a stubborn little fellow..." She cooed to the gash that couldn't be completely healed by the rod. "You just want to be difficult, don't ya?" She chuckled to herself, thinking of the irony.

_You play with sharp toys, they're gonna cut you._

"And I had the sharper toys..." She moped, picking up a needle filled with some essential sugars.

_I really hate you, Robin._ She cursed mentally. There was one thing Kori hated more than Batman, and the Teen Titans...injections, and having to inject herself, well, it wasn't exactly high on her 'to do' list.

In ten minutes she'd injected herself three times with different sugars, proteins and blood supplements to try and boost her healing rate. The intravenous drip and blood transfusion needles would keep popping out because she hadn't taped them up, but she figured that it would prove more fuss to get up and find some tape in her condition than just jab it back in.

"Robin, we called all the hospitals in Gotham – no one's seen her yet." Cyborg said, pulling up their reports. "But we still haven't found the body; maybe she's not alone..." He suggested.

"She's not alone...but when I pursued her, had her pinned to the floor and held a shuriken to her jugular...they decided to abandon her." Robin scoffed, "Yeah, it's only someone's life they're losing if they left her alone." He argued, getting up and facing them.

"These organizations are big, what's to say a life means anything to them other than inconvenience?" Raven asked, pulling her hood down, "They're not like us; it's all about personal gain."

Beast Boy stepped forwards, "Maybe they found her body, it could mean something to one of them." He sighed, putting his hand on Robin's back, "Only time will tell."

Robin was shocked at Beast Boy's wisdom and patients – he'd really grown up in the past few years. He was only nineteen compared with Robin's age of twenty, and yet, Beast Boy seemed to handle this situation better than he.

"Alright...you're right." Robin nodded, rubbing the back of his neck, "But what if I have killed her?" He asked with a wince.

The team around him were silent; they'd seen their leader of nearly seven years break down for a small mistake. Criminals weren't meant to attack back when you had them cornered, especially not the ones working alone. This meant that either this girl was valued by whoever she worked for, or she was too stupidly determined to prove herself to someone. From what they'd seen, either could be the right answer – and Beast Boy was right, only time would tell.

"Accidents happen, Robin, we've all killed before." Cyborg said, his tone was final as he turned to leave the room.

And it was true, they had all killed, all of the people in that room had killed at least one person. Did that still allow them to be heroes? They fought evil – villains of all kinds – when they ended lives...but can a death ever be justified? Do you have to stop someone's heart to kill them?

_Only time would tell._

_The needles are getting blunt._ Kori thought to herself, feeling how much more the needles hurt compared with the times before. They weren't made for going through material as thick as her pants, but could she take them off in her current state? She'd have to try; otherwise she'd be in big trouble.

Hooking her fingers into the top of her pants, she pulled them down partway but felt how her muscles in her left arm protested and almost split her skin again.

"Fucking hell!" She called out, her eyes filling with water as she sniffed and tried to clear the pain from her arm.

Not sure how to proceed, she sat there while the agony cleared from her system. How was one supposed to inject herself with blunt needles? Soon enough they'd be too blunt to even break through the pants, let alone her skin as well.

Kori then spotted a block of wood on the coffee table, the one she used to bite down on when she had to straighten her leg after the accident. Reaching out, she grabbed it and placed it in her mouth, biting hard as she grabbed a good handful of her pants into her fist and used as much strength as she could spare to rip it.

The injections had made the skin tender and soft, as well as the skin fusing to the material where glass had cut her. All the actions together made her thankful for the gag as she fought a bloodcurdling scream at the pain.

When she'd finished, she wiped the blood and sweat from her forehead and spat the wood out, perfect indentations of her teeth in the surface.

Looking down at her leg, she pulled the remainder of the pant leg off and looked down at the puncture holes in the top of her thigh. There must have been about a hundred where she'd hit wrong and thirty where she'd gotten it in the right place – either second or third time.

"You have _got_ to be kidding me." She hissed, looking down at her bag to see that there was no more little pots of treatment. "Empty." She muttered, throwing certain vials over the floor, "Nada." She huffed, "No, no, no, I can't survive on this..." She panicked, staggering over to the device that held all of her medical items.

The cooling system held several bags of blood, but they'd be no use without the vials of calcium, protein and vitamins, not to mention stabilisers that storage took out of the blood. She went through the bag and saw one little vial of stabiliser left, it would give her maybe four hours if she just lay still and got a regular amount of blood into her system.

"Not likely with this dodgy equipment..." She panicked, tears filling her eyes and her throat swelling up as she thought about the possibility of her dying.

She'd have two hours probably, just two hours more to live before her body went into cardiac arrest, and then Clerical error from the blood overload...then X'hal knows what would happen.

Limping back to the sofa with the vial in hand, she pushed the now very blunt needle into the top and pulled out the remnants into the barrel. Bracing herself for the injection, she pushed it into her lower thigh and watched it empty into her bloodstream.

"Clock's ticking, Kori." She said to herself, taking a deep breath as she strapped the bag of blood to her hip and did the same with her intravenous drip. "God, you look shit." She said to herself as she walked past a mirror.

Her hair was in disarray, hardly tied up anymore, she wasn't exactly the cleanest or most presentable criminal about the place – which was pretty disgusting.

Her pants with only one leg, her shirt torn and bloody from her fight with Robin. She didn't even know how long she'd been recovering – she just knew it had been quite a while. Slade hadn't contacted her; he probably guessed she was dead or close enough. _Bastard._

As she began her limp-run towards the door, she grabbed the blaster she'd stolen the night she was injured, and slipped it into the side of her pants. Not sure how she was going to do it, she left her house and staggered down the road in search of a chemists or the hospital.

**Alright, I – no word of a lie – have venephobia, it's an irrational fear of veins and arteries. Call me stupid but I nearly threw up explaining injections and the like. **

**Don't you think I deserve just a little review, a spare moment of your time to tell me how I did?**

**Jade.**


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter Nine

Kori knew that she couldn't go to the hospital as a civilian with her injuries – and evidence of treatment – without being called into a Police interview room. Then, when she refused to say anything, they'd get either the Titans or Batman in – and then she truly was screwed.

So what was she to do? Chemists didn't hold supplies of what she needed, and the hospital would have it in the centre of all the hallways. She could storm in there and demand it, but then the Titans would come and she'd be apprehended, it seemed that Slade had washed his hands of her and she was completely on her own to get out. The second they figured out who she was, she'd be handed back over to Batman, and she'd been warned about drawing attention to herself before – he wouldn't hesitate in _ending_ her.

"Fuck." She sighed for what felt like the millionth time since she was injured, it was her new most-used word.

Sticking to the shadows and alleyways, Kori made her way to the edge of the city. Seeing her target, she grabbed a woman around the neck and covered her mouth – silencing her screams.

"Shh, be quiet!" She hissed furiously, "I won't hurt you!" She promised.

The girl eventually calmed down enough to just shake in Kori's arms. Rolling her eyes, she turned the girl around and held the blaster in between her eyes.

"If you have any water on you, I need it." She snapped.

"I-I-I...w-w–" Kori cut her off.

"If you ask me why, I'll blow your fucking head off." Kori snapped, rubbing her neck where she could feel her blood getting thick, "I need some water, but as you can see..." Kori said, gesturing to her bloodied clothing and one-legged pants, "...I can't go and get myself some." She explained, "I will spare you any pain, at all, if you get me a bottle of water." She said, softening slightly.

The woman took great pity of the swaying girl, she could see the damage done to her body and could see that she was desperate.

"O-Okay." She nodded, getting up and walking into a store.

Kori was wary, knowing full-well that the woman could easily ask someone for their phone and call the Titans. But it seemed that her worry wasn't needed, as a few minutes later, the woman ran out of the store and over to the alleyway with a large bottle of water in hand.

"It's the smallest bottle they had," She explained, handing it to her, "Will y-y-you be okay?" She asked hesitantly.

She was scared about how the secretive girl would answer, it seemed that she needed medical attention, and she didn't even know whether this girl was a good buy or a bad guy – she could just be running from a gang.

"That doesn't concern you." Kori said, sitting on the floor and unscrewing the lid off the bottle of water, "Go, you've been of use to me." She dismissed her.

"You look like you need help..." The woman said, not moving.

"I'll be fine, go." Kori snapped, rubbing the water over her face to clean it a bit before drinking a handful.

"If you need–"

"–_I'll_ be fine, but if you don't leave now – and forget this ever happened – _you_ won't be." Kori warned, keeping her eyes averted as the woman walked off.

Kori drank some more water, making sure that she'd be able to run long enough without the intravenous drip. When she couldn't drink anymore, she extracted the needle from the crease of her elbow and left the little sack of liquid on the floor in the alleyway.

Now that she only had to worry about her left arm, she stepped out into the street – keeping to the shadows of the night – and made her way towards the closest hospital.

The walk was taking its toll on her leg, the damaged, punctured flesh of her exposed thigh was hard to use and strained to keep up with her good leg. The same could be said for her left arm, though it was bandaged from her shoulder to her elbow, it still snagged and pulled on the flesh. Her neck was the only thing that was closest to healed; though it was still bleeding – the blood even dripping out of the bandage down her neck – it didn't hurt when she moved, at least.

"You try to heal yourself and it bites you on the ass." She muttered to herself quietly, looking down at the pavement and her exposed leg to try and keep the staring eyes off of her.

It seemed to work to some extent, less people paid her attention when her face was covered and she just acted like nothing was wrong.

_Apart from looking like the hunchback of Notre Dame when you walk, Kori._

_Ring. Ring. Ring._

Ring. Ring. Ring.

_Ring. Ring. Ring._

"Robin, you've got to answer that sometime." Raven sighed, picking it up. "Hello?"

Robin just looked through the data banks of the hospitals; trying to find the girl he'd harmed. What the rest of his team didn't know was why he was looking for the girl, the reason he was searching so frantically for a small-time criminal. She'd called him up on betrayal, and the way she spoke to him – it was like she knew him.

_Who are you?_ He asked himself, looking through the profiles and pictures of everyone. _Or more importantly, who are you connected to?_ He had a theory that this girl was connected, through blood or otherwise, to someone that Robin used to know – someone that he'd defeated and put behind bars. If that was the case, then this girl could prove dangerous if still alive, or her connections would prove even more dangerous if she was dead. He needed to speak to her, interrogate her if he had to – he needed to know who he'd offended to turn her into a criminal.

Looking more closely at what she'd stolen, he'd figured she wasn't with Slade – he wouldn't waste getting caught to steal things he could already make. He could see that they weren't anywhere near as dangerous as Slade, but then, hardly anyone was when you compared them properly. She'd stolen items that could be used in a nuclear weapon, hand weapons, communication devices...almost anything could be made with them.

Robin's inner thoughts were corrupted when Raven pushed him out of the chair, he looked around frantically to see that all the Titans had assembled in the control room and were looking at the screen. Raven had pulled up the phone connection and was showing a CCTV film of the woman on the phone.

"Batman? Titians? Anyone?" She called into the phone, worried.

"We're here, what's the emergency?" Cyborg asked, leaning on the desk professionally – it seemed that this was the last resort people used when calling for Batman's help.

"I was pulled into an alleyway..." She said slowly. _She's calling to find a rapist?_ "...There was a girl there..." _Multiple rape? That sounds a bit more serious. _"She was covered in blood; but she told me she wouldn't hurt me..."_ No rape? _"So, I think it was her own, she had bandages on too..." _Sarah Connor?_ "She asked me to buy her water, she didn't take my purse or anything, and then she let me go." The woman explained frantically, "I think she's being chased, but I couldn't tell you who – or from what side."

"It's alright, ma'am." Cyborg said, "Which way did she go?" He asked.

"I-I left the alleyway before she did, I waited to see if she'd come out – but she never did." The woman said, her voice squeaky, "I went back after a few minutes, but she wasn't there – just an in IV drip, a-and I couldn't let her just wander about the city in her state–" She went on, her voice panicky.

"–Ma'am. Ma'am–" Cyborg tried, but she went on.

"He leg was maimed, her arm covered in bloody bandages – and her neck, it was dripping with blood..." She went on.

But no one listened to the rest, they had learned all they needed to learn from the last injury – she had a slashed, bleeding neck.

"Sarah Connor!" Beast Boy called out with a grin.

"Ma'am, thank you for your information." Cyborg said, cutting off the CCTV, "You have contributed to the safety of the city, and everyone within it." He said before ending the connection.

"Nicely done." Raven complimented him.

"Batman mailed me the transcript." Cyborg explained, "Where would you go if you had injuries like her? It doesn't sound like she's been treated..."

"The Comic Book store." Beast Boy answered with a 'thumbs-up'.

"Here." Robin said.

"The Hospital." Raven rolled her eyes, "But she's not stupid enough to go there – she knows we've got them all tabbed, and you don't exactly slash your neck three inches deep by falling down the stairs." She said with a raised eyebrow.

Just then the alarm sounded, it was flashing red which meant that it was an important building like a bank, or a museum or a–

"Gotham City General." Raven said, turning to face her team, "Looks like she is stupid enough to go there." She said with wide-eyes. "Are you sure she didn't jump under that shuriken because it was shiny?" She asked sarcastically with a roll of her eyes.

_Gotham City General._

Kori looked up at the huge building and tried to figure out the best way to get inside and get what she needed. Not sure whether going in full-force would get her anywhere, she opted for sneaking in and raiding the supply closet.

A window on the force floor was open, getting up there wouldn't be a problem, but walking out with her injuries and a bag full of medical supplies...it wasn't going to happen.

She fired a grapple through the open window and heard it hook into something; it had some ground as she managed to pull her entire body up with it as the anchor. While she was being pulled up, she thanked X'hal that she had an automatic pulley system rather than having to climb up – her arm was bad enough.

She hauled her body through the window and landed on the floor beside the bed, apparently her grapple was hooked into the lamp screwed to the bedside table.

As she got up, she came face-to-face with a little girl – hardly ten years old – that was staring at her with big, beautiful, azure eyes. She was hooked up to several machines and leads were all over her. Kori looked over the girl and saw her thin layer of hair and weak legs.

"Hello." She smiled to the girl.

The girl smiled back, "Hello." Her voice was sweet and kind, the sound you could imagine babies laughter would be like if you infused it with a child's sigh. "Are you a patient here?" She asked her.

"No, dear." Kori admitted.

"You're visiting someone?" She asked, tilting her head to the side adorably.

"Erm, no." Kori said, rubbing her head.

"Then, why are you here?" The little girl asked in a sweet whisper.

"I'm not well, sweetie." She explained, "But I don't like hospitals," She half-lied, "So, I'm here to get some supplies to treat myself." She said, keeping her tone light.

"That's dangerous." The girl scolded, "That's a lot of blood." She pointed to Kori's damaged neck and arm.

The Tamaranean looked at the girl's arm and all of the leads handing off of it, but the girl didn't seem to mind – she was acting in the same way Kori would act if the little girl looked at her boots, or her haircut.

"It is..." Kori nodded, "But I'm going to be fine."

"I have a plaster if you need one." The girl said, getting out of the bed and dragging a tall frame with an intravenous drip hanging off of it. "It's got kittens on." She giggled.

The girl handed Kori the plaster, it was only little but the Tamaranean pretended that it would make everything better.

"Thank you." Kori smiled, "Do you want some help?" She asked, seeing the girl struggle with the leads slightly.

"Yes, please." The girl said politely.

Kori nodded and walked over, moving the stand over to the right hand side of the bed and untangling the wires so that the girl could have the covers back over her again. When Kori had finished, she stepped back and looked around the room for something she could use to patch up her leg.

"Can I borrow this?" Kori asked, picking up a spare robe from the pile on the chair beside her bed.

"It won't fit you!" She giggled.

"Yes, it will." Kori chuckled, feigning a glare at the girl – it was very playful behaviour for her.

"No, it's not!" She squeaked, grinning.

"Fine then, I'll show you!" Kori said, sticking her tongue out at the girl childishly. The girl laughed when Kori put her arm through one of the holes and it ripped. "Oops." Kori chuckled.

The girl snickered.

Kori then proceeded to rip the robe so that she could tie it around her leg, the girl watched her intently – interested.

"Does it hurt?" She asked all of a sudden in the silence.

Kori looked up, not sure whether to lie or not to the girl. She figured that this girl would know a lot about hospital life considering the way she was hooked up and her pale complexion.

"Yes, but I'll be alright soon enough." Kori lied, knowing it would take weeks to heal enough to continue with her work.

"What's your name?" The girl asked as she watched Kori tighten the material and rearrange the sack of blood – that was almost empty – on her side.

"Kori." She smiled, sitting on the end of the girl's bed, "What's yours?" She asked.

"Sofia." The girl said, "Do you have a mom and dad?" She asked.

Kori was taken aback by the question, when would someone ask that in a normal conversation? How does someone answer when they have none?

"I did."

"I did, too." Sofia said, "Are they with the angels as well?" She asked.

"Yeah," Kori smiled, a little extra water filling her eyes, "Yes, they are."

Kori couldn't understand her emotions, she was upset but...she'd just met this girl – how could she already have formed a bond? She'd just been nosy and handed her a pointless plaster! And yet, the Tamaranean felt herself bound to the little girl already, and she knew she'd be back.

"I must go now, Sofia." Kori said, getting up off of the bed.

"Oh..." The girl sighed, looking down at her hands in her lap, "Will you come and see me again?" She asked with light in her eyes.

Kori was faced with a dilemma now. Once she robbed the supply store, she'd never be able to come back to the hospital...and in turn, never see Sofia again, or, alternatively she could tell the girl she'd not come back and save the girl misguided hope.

Looking at the little bundle of giggles, she could see that the girl was going to be there long-term. Not sure why her Tamaranean attachments had surfaced now, Kori slowly nodded to the little girl, unable to say no.

"But you must tell no one of me." She said seriously.

"I promise." The girl smiled, her excitement was evident.

Kori left the room, not sure why she'd formed the chemical attachment to the girl – although she was confused, she knew that she'd never be able to stay away from the hospital when she knew her gota'thol was here.

**Right, the hard one to explain – but here goes!**

**Gota'thol is a word I made up, but it's meant to be like a k'norfka, or something like that. It is basically a Tamaranean bond that is chemical, I compared it to the feelings people get about adverts on TV about orphans and things.**

**Like imprinting...but...more...alien...and not about love, it's more like a psychic link.**

**Rate and review my crazy chapter, the best is yet to come!**

**Jade.**


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter Ten

Trying to look as normal as possible, Kori walked into the supply closet and locked herself in, her blood-ridden clothing rubbing crimson over every surface she touched.

Her heartbeat quickened, she could feel her blood clotting from the transfusion not being stabilised. Looking around she could see little vials but none of them were in 'dumb', they were in their correct names and she didn't know which was the one she needed.

Grabbing an empty needle – sterilised – and a little vial off the first tray, she pulled a small amount into the barrel and took off the material, ready to inject herself.

But just as the needle was about to pierce the skin, the door she was perched against opened – apparently the door wasn't locked – and a nurse walked in. Obviously, she spotted Kori and her blood-covered body and screamed, seeing the needle in her hand.

Kori covered her mouth and put the needle at her neck, stopping her screaming.

"Shut up, just shut up!" She hissed, pressing the needle to her neck.

The nurse froze up and only fought minutely, though it did a lot considering Kori's weakened state.

"I..." She trailed off, shaking the dizziness from her head, "I need stabiliser for a blood transfusion." She said, showing the woman her pouch of blood. "Which one is it?" She asked.

The nurse stayed still, not answering the bloodied girl who was loosening her death-grip on her – she knew that the girl wouldn't last long if she was giving herself an unsanitary blood transfusion.

"Answer me, or I'll kill you." Kori said, pulling out her blaster and placing it to the nurse's temple. The nurse shook but didn't give into her demands, Kori was losing her temper, "Look, if you don't answer me, I'll die." Kori said, rubbing blood from her eyes, "Which means you could be up for murder, or...if I see myself dying anyway...I'll just shoot you in the head." She threatened, "As you can see, I'm not a very patient woman..." She looked at the nametag, "Mary, so tell me." She snarled.

Mary hesitated but moved swiftly when she heard Kori press the trigger slightly on her blaster. The nurse dove for the one with the longest name and handed it to Kori.

"Xergyeineathol?" Kori snickered. "Do you think I'm stupid?" She hissed, "I know a fucking poison when I see it!" She snarled, running into Mary and wrapping her hand around her throat and squeezing tightly. "Do you know...how many people I've killed, Mary?" She asked light-heartedly.

Mary shook her head violently, her breathing ragged as she prayed for her life to be spared.

"Three." Kori whispered. "I've killed three children." She told her, gritting her teeth, "I've killed three children, how many people have you killed Mary? How many people have you ended with your bare hands?" She asked in a mentally-insane tone, it scared her slightly but she persisted, the pressure and pain was getting to her.

"N-No one." The woman shook, her voice was a raspy whisper as she spoke through Kori's death-grip on her throat.

"And yet you tried to kill me!" Kori called out loudly, "You tried to kill me, you knew that the second it entered my blood stream that I'd be dead." She hissed, "You knew that you'd be able to watch the light leave my eyes, you knew you hear my last breath..." She laughed with no humour, "You knew you'd just let me die, and then you'd become a hero for something that I could do now..." She said, flexing her grip, "Yet you know _nothing_." She snapped, throwing her into the door. "YOU KNOW NOTHING!" Kori screamed, holding up her blaster.

The door then crashed open and their conversation was on show for the whole ward, doctors and nurses watched as Kori looked around frantically and Mary fell out of the store room.

As if in slow motion, like time had been freeze-framed, Kori watched several things happen. The panic button was pressed, that meant the Titans were coming, all of the patients were rushed into their rooms to keep them safe and all of the staff said their prayers.

"They're on their way, aren't they?" Kori called out as she took a step, everyone jumping away.

Kori then looked at the blaster and dropped it, shocked at how out of control she'd gotten.

"She's mentally unstable; get someone from psychiatrics up here!" She heard a woman call.

"I'M NOT CRAZY!" Kori called out, tears forming in her eyes, "I'M NOT!" She snapped.

All of the staff froze, wondering what the girl – who was obviously not alright – was going to do next. Their breath was held as she turned back to the store room and picked up several vials.

"Which one stabilises a blood transfusion?" She called out, her hands shaking as she went through the different vials in her hands.

Seeing the blaster she picked it up and placed it back into her pants, calming herself enough to not cry anymore, but the tracks were still visible.

"WHICH ONE?" She screamed, throwing a few at the doctor closest to her, they were moving in to try and contain her. "BACK THE FUCK OFF!" She snarled, holding the blaster up by his face, "Or I swear to God, I'll shoot your fucking head off." She warned.

"You don't want to do that." The doctor said, stepping back with his hands raised.

"I don't, I really don't." She nodded, "I want to be well again, but she tried to kill me!" She hissed at Mary.

No one believed her, obviously. They took one look at who had the blaster and thought they knew; they also looked at her physical injuries and clothing and figured she was in some sort of gang that had guns and knives.

"No one is trying to kill you." He told her, keeping his distance.

"She did." Kori sobbed, pointing the gun at Mary in the back, "She told me that the stabiliser was Xergyeineathol, she was trying to get me to inject myself with it!" She cried, a tear leaving her eye as she started to break down.

"That _is_ stabiliser, do you need some?" The doctor asked.

Kori looked back at him, her face perplexed. He was young, he was tall and looked gentle but firm, he didn't have the badge of a psychiatric doctor, he was just a GP.

"What the fuck do you know?" She hissed, running a hand through her hair and breathing heavily as more tears fell.

"Why didn't you just ask for help? We would have helped you." The doctor said, taking a small step forwards. "There's no need for this." He said, indicating to her hand holding the gun.

"You wouldn't have helped me..." She muttered, "You would have called the Titans; they warned you about me, I know they did." She whispered quickly.

"You're the one?" The doctor asked, his voice a whisper.

"They did this to me; they did this so that they could catch me!" She told him, her throat tight.

The doctor looked at her neck, seeing the blood dripping from her slowly, and then he looked down at her leg where she'd tried to treat herself. It seemed she was barbaric with the needles; they'd done more damage than use.

"They want me _dead_." She told the doctor. "They've wanted me dead since the accident, I didn't mean it!" She cried, her eyes spilling more tears.

"What happened? What didn't you mean?" He asked her.

"I didn't mean for it to happen, but they thought I did..." She said, breaking eye contact and looking at the floor intently – lost in a memory. "They d-didn't let me explain..." She said, more tears were coming, running down her chin.

"What did you do?" She heard from her side.

Immediately her eyes shot up to see Sofia in the hallway. She was clutching a teddy, a little brown teddy that hung from its tattered arm in her hand. Her eyes filled with more tears as she looked at the little girl she'd bonded with, she was staring with her wide azure eyes at the gun in her hand.

"Kori...what are you doing?" She asked, stepping backward a little. "Why have you got a gun?" She asked.

"I-I..." Kori couldn't answer, she just looked at the gun and then to the floor again.

Kori could hear her heart beating a mile a minute in her chest, trying to push round the too-thick, clotted blood. She'd run out of time.

"The clock is chiming..." She sang quietly, her legs giving out as she slowly fell to the floor, "...Your time is up..." She sang, her final words witnessed by the Titans who came crashing through the doors, armed.

**Hopefully that was insane enough for you, but not to the point of no return – oh, I've said too much!**

**That was the first instalment of this series, I hope you enjoyed it and it left you wanting more. Please, if you enjoy my work and have clicked that little favourite button, don't be a stranger and like me on Facebook. I should also be getting Twitter going soon, but that's a working progress as I can't use it...at all...at the moment, I'm a little dim.**

**Please rate and review, it's your final chance!**

**Jade.**


	12. UPDATE

**Hello everyone, thank you for all of the reviews. I am reassured that I am doing the right thing thanks to your suppor**

**Sorry I haven't added anything lately, it has been Christmas, and there was a crisis with the computers! Firstly, I didn't have one for a week, then I got a MacBook and had to learn how to use it (FUNNY SHIT: might do a Fic about it…), THEN the Microsoft Word ran out and I was unable to open my files for a week and a half, and now they're all converting. It is all very stressful when your work is in demand… **

**I am currently writing a different Fic, just so that I don't get writer's block with Cracks in the Looking Glass (it will be called something different when released so keep an eye out).**

**Hopefully – due to it's likeness in nature – you'll like my new Fic, it shouldn't be long before I start posting the first few chapters up, I hope that you'll be patient with it like you show my other work. **

** Again, even if you read this after this is posted, please review – there's nothing better than checking your e-mail to find you've got a review! **

** Thank you, again. **

** Jade.**


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